Shades of Green
by Grape Icies
Summary: AU: Kimiko gets to move in with the rowdy Pedrosa clan! She's grateful for the opportunity, but things are rarely what they seem at first glance... (Warning: Heavy OC usage!)
1. Insanity's My Best Friend

**A/N:** Hello, my little darlings. Now I know I have a bunch of pitchforks waiting to deliver me to my ultimate demise, but I WILL finish this one. Promise. Now, I came across a pretty little fanfic recently and wanted to do my own rendition of the story. With permission of Zoerz (Please check hers out! I really like it. :3), author of "This is High School", I present to you my own AU fic. I'll probably stay close to her storyline in the beginning, but spice things up a little, Grape style! (Don't be surprised if the story suddenly lurches off in a whole new direction.)

There will be a couple of POV shifts and I apologize in advance. There will also be other languages intermingled into the story, but I'll try my best to help people figure out the words in context clues... Do you guys want a glossary at the end or splashed into the story or would you not mind using google translate? (Portuguese, Japanese, Brazilian, or any other persons that speak the languages I butcher, please forgive me. D:) P.S. A helpful tip to translating Mari: whenever she uses a ' in her Spanish words, it's because she cuts s's out of her speech.

TT_TT I love having people who are fellow authors in school. They soothe my worries.

**Disclaimers and Citations: **Xiaolin Showdown is most definitely not mine. Respective characters belong to their owners. The book quoted is _Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side_ by Beth Fantaskey. Layla is a character concept borrowed from Kidd Death, used with permission. The story concept is partially borrowed from Zoerz, also used with permission.

* * *

><p>Vaguely aware of the blood seeping down my face, sliding down my cheeks and dripping off my chin like crimson tears, I stared numbly at the spearhead charging at me; the intent to pierce through my skull was pretty obvious. <em>It's funny, <em>I thought to myself as time slowed to a close-halt for me. _I should be terrified out of my mind, but I'm not._ The sense of danger simply wasn't registering despite the logical half of my brain telling me I _was_ aware of the fact of the matter: _I was going to die_.

But I still wasn't feeling the terror that the situation was meant to inspire.

The awareness seemed almost... Synthetic. Foreign. Like this simple awareness was something someone had imposed on me, not really something I was really _supposed_ to _feel._ Time was still slowed as if I was watching a movie and the director had decided to turn on the slo-mo and more disconnected awareness ran through my numbed thoughts, a slight ringing going through my ears. I felt close-to-nothing; no pain; general sensitivity to my surroundings and extremely dulled senses. Obscure recollection stirred up my memories as a specific one floated to the forefront of my thoughts:

Papa once told me that the mind was a fascinating thing. _"Our company thrives on knowing how the minds of the youth work,"_ he'd said. _"Not knowing what makes certain emotions and reactions come out would be our downfall."_ I hadn't paid the attention I should've back then, distracted by the newest of his products at my young age. However, through the cheerful blips and the colors flashing across the screen, I heard him say, _"Like fear. It is an emotion we must either avoid or exploit."_ I looked up at him, confusion decorating my face. _Fear?_ Why would my Papa talk about fear to me? My eyes followed him to one of Tohomiko Industries' display cases and saw as he pulled out one of our only 'Mature' games. Papa banned me from playing it when he released it, so it'd been a pure mystery to me.

"_This... This game is all about bringing out fear from the deepest pits of a person's psyche. Not the typical, screaming, juvenile fear that people get from things surprising them and jumping out at them,"_ I wasn't even sure if he'd been talking to me then. Something about him looked like he was so far away... beyond my reach and beyond my understanding. _"This is the purest, raw fear. The type that seeps into your system so slowly, you are unable to process it at first. It's the numb, frozen fear that shuts your blood down cold and brings down your system. When time slows down and every thought you have, every breath you take, has suddenly become more precious than gold. Your mind fills up with delusions and ridiculous thoughts to act as a natural pain-killer. All you can do is see. You can't even move. You can't hear. You can't see. You can't smell anything except your own terror."_ I remember feeling intimidated by his monologue and yelling at him to stop because he was scaring me. And just as quickly as he'd gone into his trance, he'd come out and became the Papa I knew and loved.

I hadn't understood back then, but I understand now.

This is the raw fear he was talking about and it tickled me ironic. It's true. I was effectively shut down, simply seeing the world around me as a second-hand viewer. _Dumb_ body, I thought to myself. _Move! Breathe! Wiggle! Do something! Don't just stand there like some sort of idiot._ And I was aware of everything again. _It's funny how I can think all of this in such a short amount of time._ It was also funny how I was taking everything with a grain of rice, but I wasn't complaining. I could be as cynical and as jaded as I wanted to be in my last moments.

Glancing up to meet the angry, gray eyes of my almost-murderer, a smile spread across my face. _It's like the guy trying to stab a spear at me is moving through a bunch of jelly. Haha. _I envisioned the room being encased in the thick, purple jam and the stupid look that would appear on his face when he discovered the sugary goo restricting his movement_s. _I almost started to giggle, but knew I wouldn't have enough time to, so I held back the urge to. Out of instinct, I looked to the side slowly, meeting the turquoise eyes of my best friend, a pang of regret running through me as I saw the pure terror through her glasses, fogging up as tears ran down her dark cheeks. _Don't cry,_ I wanted to say to her.

_Stupid, _I thought to myself as I watched the tears drip onto the floor, splashing like little dots. _Stop crying, idiot._ She knew I hated it when she cried. Especially when she cried over me. _Find your parents. If I die, at least they can live. Run. Don't just sit there and look at me. Live. You can't die if I do. If I see you on the other side, I'll kill you again because you died like a dumbass._ Maybe I was the dumbass, but that was typical: expected. Breaking my gaze from hers, I turned back to my attacker, eyes meeting his angry dull gray ones, and I pitied him. I pitied him because I knew he smelled and because I could almost see his ribs from under his ripped and dirty shirt. _This is a job for him. So that he can live and feed himself, he has to kill me. Isn't that funny?_ I mused. _I pity the guy that's gonna kill me: understand him. Damn. Near-death is really starting to get to me._

I closed my eyes, waiting for the spear to pierce through me, and thought of the boy whose face I've been dreaming of since the day I honestly and truly met him and not the persona he displays. I smiled as a tear threatened to run down my cheek. _God, if I survive this, I swear I'll properly confess to him. _Then, acting of its own accord, my mind reeled back and the pleasant memories I shared with him and all his siblings. Slowly, it reeled back further until I came back to the beginning. _The day I moved in with the Pedrosa family._

**~*Four and Half Years Prior*~**

**SLAM!**

The small Japanese girl cringed when the locker door collided with its frame, producing a very unsightly sound. She hadn't meant to slam it; she just didn't know her own strength sometimes. She despised unnecessarily loud things. But for all how she hated her locker at the moment, she'd found a new object of her contempt in the form of her dark-skinned best friend, who was ever-so-nicely laughing her butt off at Kimiko's expression, which had gone from a cringe to flat-out annoyed very quickly. "I hope you choke on your spit," Kimiko growled under her breath. She wasn't known for her light temper and the events of the day weren't making her nerves any more agreeable.

Recovering from her fit of laughter, Mari stood up, giggling. She stood at about 5' 3", five inches taller than the petite Asian and was built thicker, her curves more pronounced and defined on her Hispanic body. Something she'd always loved about that girl was her pride in standing out. She wasn't skinny, but she made a point out of making a statement. ("Women should have curves," she would declare, quoting one of her favorite books. "Not angles." She would always dramatically pause. "_Pero_ _u'tede son linda;_ you guys are cute. You don't look like _e'queleto_. Always girls that want to show their bones walking all over the place. Skeletons! _Que degracia._")

"_Calma_, Kimi," she soothed in her heavy accent, not wanting to set off her friend's fiery temper. "No need to be _de mal humor_ so early! You need to be Hapi-_Kimi_ when you meet the Hapi-_Fami_." To emphasize her point, the curly-haired teen gave her a large, shining Cheshire grin, breaking the smile for just a fraction of a second to blow a wild curl from her face in order to mimic perky perfection.

Kimiko sighed and shook her head softly. Today was the day she moved in with her nutty best friend, the one and only Mariana Zafira Pedrosa Rios, and the rest of the Pedrosa clan (Not even family. Family was too small to describe the chaos in that home). Why was she moving into a house already packed with eleven people, you ask? Because her lovely Papa Tohomiko had yet another business endeavor to pursue in her home city, Tokyo, and Kimiko had grown to love the quaint little American town they'd lived in for the past five years.

Which meant she'd put her foot down and refused to leave with him. She loved Japan, but she couldn't leave the school and all of her friends _now – _especially Mari the Nut-Job, who would get an absolute kick out of annoying her every day while she was gone with whiny emails about how lonely she was and how mean Kimiko was for leaving her. As much as she loved the girl, she was one hell of an annoyingly persuasive baby when it suited her.

_I guess that's how she convinced both our parents to let me stay with the Pedrosas, _Kimiko thought to herself, shifting the weight from one foot to the other, hand gripping her shoulder bag. She closed her eyes and remembered the day they'd approached her father like it were yesterday:

"_Are you CRAZY, Mariana Zafira?" the CEO yelled in his heavily accented English, his face going red with panic and anger that she'd even suggested it. "Your house is full of boys!"_

_"But Papa!" Kimiko protested; they had only just started their suggestion!_

_"No buts, Kimiko! I will not allow you to stay anywhere unfit for you!"_

_Ending their argument with a clearing of her throat, Mari, after fixing her wire-rimmed glasses in the way she does, took an arm around his shoulders solemnly, her face the picture of seriousness._ "Señor _Tomohiko, _porfavor_. Walk with me._" _Her father's face went from bright red to its usual light apricot shade._

_"You have half an hour," he told her reluctantly, knowing that it was a losing argument if his daughter's friend was serious enough to confront him. Kimiko knew that he was mentally preparing himself for the whines and pleas he knew were coming._ _Before she knew it, Mari disappeared with her father for about fourty minutes, leaving a very confused Kimiko behind. Looking for relief from the silence, she'd started to text Keiko until they returned, surprised when her father picked her up off the couch and smiled widely, telling her to pack her things and make sure everything was ready for the move into Mari's home. Standing at the doorway, Mari winked at her and flashed her a thumbs-up, grinning proudly._

She still had yet to know the magical words Mari had spoken to her father, who'd changed his tune relatively quickly, and moved on to help them convince Yaritza and Gabriel Pedrosa, who were more than happy to oblige. The fact of how easily everything happened somewhat made her suspicious at first but she figured that it was because her father loved the Brazilian family from what he knew of them and just wanted Kimiko to be both happy and safe before she got the idea that she wanted to live alone. Everything remained highly amusing to her.

"Hellooooo?"

"Huh?" Kimiko blinked back to reality and looked at Mari, focusing on her face as if coming out of a haze. How strange. She never spaced out when her friends were talking to her.

Mari drew back her manicured fingers from her friend's face after quite literally snapping her back to reality. "I was talking to you, Kimi," she pouted, jutting out her plump and glossed bottom lip, despite her bright turquoise eyes flashing in worry, almost asking if she was okay without their owner having to ask.

"Sorry," Kimiko apologized sincerely, her own sky-colored eyes reassuring Mari that she was fine. "I kind of zoned out. What were you saying?"

Satisfied with the unspoken answer, the Hispanic checked the time and huffed, blowing a few more unruly curls from her face. "I'll tell you at lunch. Class is about to start and Mr. Cranky-Butt-Garcia threatened detention if I was ever late more than once." She looked down the hall, towards the front entrance. "And where the HELL is Keiko? I swear I'm going to beat that girl up if she overslept again. If I can't sleep in, neither can she!"

Kimiko laughed and fixed her bag on her shoulders before pulling out her cell phone. "I'll text her and make sure she gets to school on time." Mari looked at her with all the affection in the world.

"_Querida_, you and that handy little cell phone." Mari looked down at her silver little wrist watch and cried out, "_¡Aye! ¡El tiempo!_ Gotta go!" She kissed Kimiko's cheeks again and yelled over her shoulder as she started the race against time to Mr. Garcia's dreadful Spanish class, "Can't let the bell catch me! _¡Adios!_"

Kimiko shook her head, smiling to herself, and texted Keiko as she walked, absent-mindedly heading to her history class. Luckily, she was studious enough at home to be able to zone out during the time they were in class and really think about everything. As she took her seat, she received the text that Keiko was safely in class. She put her phone away and pulled out a random notebook and pencil to at least look like she was remotely paying attention. As her teacher started his lecture, Kimiko stared at the chalkboard right behind his head and thought about the Pedrosas, paying only just enough attention to her teacher in case he decided to be a jerk and call on her.

She'd seen all of their faces at least once, but the one she really knew was Mari's mother since she was always more than willing to pick Mari and her friends up from school and go out for some girl time, something she appreciated since her own mother was... gone. Kimiko swallowed as her eyes idly followed her teacher throughout the classroom before she returned herself to her thoughts. The trio of her, Mari, and Keiko usually hung out in either her or Keiko's house because of the fact that the Pedrosa residence was usually extremely noisy and Mari hated it when they were there, something that neither she nor Keiko understood. With nine children, the one time Keiko and Kimiko did visit, it was mostly spent watching Mari kick her siblings out of her room and yell at them about the noise level despite Kimiko and Keiko's assurances that she didn't need to do anything extra for them and to relax. After that failure - mostly for their friend's sanity - the three of them agreed to simply meet in the quieter Japanese residences of Keiko and Kimiko. Keiko only had one younger brother that tended to leave them alone ("He's in his 'dark' phase," she explained to them. "He just sits and sulks in his room.") and Kimiko was an only child.

The three did consider asking Keiko's parents to let Kimiko stay with them, but Keiko explained that they were very uptight about favors and were unlikely to say yes to the proposition simply because they would be uncomfortable with a person outside their family staying in their home. That's when Mari's idea had come up. Her parents were very amiable and already had a big house with enough space thanks to government grants.

"_They adopted government-taken children," Mari explained. "So the government gives them a big _casa _as a _gracia_."_

"_They adopt?"_

"_Yeah! They only really have three blood children. The rest of us are adopted."_

"_Us?" Keiko had asked, surprised._

"_You thought I was partially-trilingual just because?" Mari asked. "My parents were illegal immigrants from _La República Dominicana_," she told them in Spanish to emphasize her point. "My dad got caught and I got taken away when I was 10 while they were deported because of it. The Pedrosas adopted me about a month afterwards and the rest is _história_." She spoke the last word in as best of a Brazilian Portuguese accent as she could manage._

"_That explains your freaky accent when you talk," Keiko had teased while Kimiko laughed in the background. "I can never tell whether you're speaking Spanish or Portuguese."_

_Mari looked highly offended, her already dark cheeks darkening a little more at the indignity of it all. "My accent is NOT freaky!" She recomposed herself despite their laughter at the fact she'd corrected them with a very heavy accent. "Anyway! If you_ maldita mocosas _are done laughing at me" she shot a glare at them and they smiled innocently at her "I can finish _mi _e'tori." They folded their hands on their laps and silently told her to go on. She flipped her then-straightened hair over her shoulder and continued. "They have three 'real' kids: Raimundo, Kaiki, and Nathalia, but they treat the rest of us _como família. _Kimi, they'd love you. _Mamãe _already does."_

_"I don't know, Mari... Papa would never agree to it; you have four brothers all near my age," she pointed out, frowning._

_Mari snorted in an extremely unlady-like fashion. "Bah! They're too smart to try any moves on you." She smirked and held up her fists playfully, jabbing at the empty air to mimick a fight. "_Nosotra' _can take all of them and kick their hormonal butts_ ha'ta mañana."

_Kimiko laughed at Mari. Keiko asked, grinning widely, "Translations?"_

_The girl dramatically sighed. "Do I really need translations at this point? Keiko, you're taking basic Spanish."_

_"Excuse me if I don't feel like grabbing a dictionary every time I talk to you!"_

_"_Oye_!" Mari bristled, going from sitting to kneeling irritably, her hands on her hips and a displeased scowl directed towards Keiko. "_Si no te gu'ta mi e'pañol, te puede' ir._"_

_"Again! I can't understand you!" Mari held up her fist threateningly, approaching Keiko before Kimiko threw a pillow into both their faces._

_"Enough!" she yelled, getting annoyed with the arguing. Keiko and Mari looked at each other and 'hmph'ed before turning away from each other. Kimiko rolled her eyes before looking back at Mari. "Anyway, do you really think papa is going to let me?"_

_Mari dissolved all hard feelings and looked back her. "He will if I have anything to say about it." Kimiko rose a brow and Mari simply grinned her favorite chesire grin in response. "Don't think too much on the _detalles_."_

_"I guess I have nothing to lose," she shrugged, giving Mari a weak smile. She really didn't want to return to Japan to return to body guards in her face all the time and the private-public school drama prominent in Tokyo, but she was nervous at the thought of having to live with nine other kids for two whole years. But... The schools... She honestly did not want to go to a private school again. "We'll ask Papa," Kimiko sighed, resigned. Mari had cheered and that'd been the end of the conversation._

_Keiko sat up straight and smirked widely, alerting the other girls of the arrival of fresh gossip. "So did you hear that Ashley was trying to date Jack...?"_

Kimiko doodled a little, her mind too preoccupied to remember all the details of their gossip session. She chewed on the eraser of her pencil nervously as she slowly tuned back into the lesson and shot a glance at the wall clock. The whole idea of meeting these people was eating at her even though she knew it shouldn't have been. She groaned and distracted herself with the drawing of a little star, eagerly resolving to not dwell on the subject any more.

_Well... at least, not until lunch._

~*Noon*~

Kimiko found her two best friends in the cafeteria, laughing a bit on the inside at how much they stood out in the crowd. She made a quick scan of the other students, noticing that, indeed, everyone else was wearing t-shirts and jeans. Of course. that was far too simple for her friends. She gave both of them a look-over, noticing the tiny and bright Keiko first. Said girl had opted to tie her honey-brown hair into two messy braids, a pair of over-sized white sunglasses propped onto the crown of her head. Her dark brown almond eyes looked around critically, the tiny and round nose scrunched up, showing off her sprinkled freckles. Her bright orange shirt (which looked huge on her tiny frame) was tied on the right into a knot, wrinkling the design a little, but complimenting her gold, big-buckled belt and gladiator sandals that showed off her long toes, and to top everything off, she had a nice big purse for all her books and a pair of lightly shredded shorts, showing off her yellowed, thin legs. Keiko, like her, wasn't very tall and only stood at about five feet even and didn't have a very pronounced body shape under all the clothes.

Mari, on the other hand, was like a small Amazon, standing at average height, but having a wild look about her. Like her and Keiko, she changed her hair color (albeit less frequently) and this time it was a light tan color with several brown low-lights, lighter than her skin and making her seem even darker and more exotic with her hair curly and unruly today. Everything about her was round and curvy, though her chest wasn't very pronounced in comparison to everything else. She always dressed to her strengths and today's ensemble consisted of a strapless canary yellow shirt-dress with a light brown fastener belt under her breasts and matching flats. To stay within school policy, she had on a pair of white tights under her dress and a short-sleeved bolero to cover her shoulders.

'_We all went pretty simple today,_' Kimiko mused. She herself was recycling a pink tank top, loose denim ruffle-skirt/jacket combo with pink thigh-high socks and blue, worn converse and her favorite rainbow bag. Her hair was ash-blonde with cute little pink streaks for the fun-factor, contrasting against the blue of her eyes and making her already palid skin almost radiate. She was finally spotted.

"KIMI!" Keiko waved her over, her brown and slanted eyes lit up in excitement. They were an energetic trio, if nothing.

She walked over and asked off-handedly, "What are they poisoning us with today?"

"Some pathetic _escusa_ for a taco," Mari said, shaking her head solemnly. "Poor _Mejicanos._"

She peeked over at the serving windows. "At least it looks edible."

"Looks are deceiving," Keiko said, making a face.

"Suck it up, girls," Kimiko told them, turning both her friends and pushing them forward. "We have to eat."

"_¿No te dije_?" Mari said nervously. "I'm watching _mi figura._"

"Liar; you love your figure. Now cut the bull and move!" she commanded sternly. "We have things to talk about!"

After some pushing and effort, the three were soon seated. "Okay!" Mari declared, taking out a pile of pictures she'd brought for Kimiko's sake. "Here's the break-down." Kimiko gripped her pen and notebook, ready to memorize the names and faces of the Pedrosas – even take notes if she had to.

"_Mamãe e Pai,_" she told her, showing Kimiko pictures of her parents. The Japanese girl nodded. She knew them well enough. Keiko just looked on in amusement. Then, Mari took out three pictures from the pile and laid them down. "Their blood-kids." She pointed them out in order from oldest to youngest. She started with a teen that had lightly spiked brown hair and the most curious look of mischief in his smile and jade-colored eyes. "Raimundo," Mari told her, grabbing her attention. "17. He's the oldest of the blood kids _y un año _older than us. _El payaso atlético_. Loves to play pranks and hang out with his _amigos_ all the time, but he usually stays out of the way 'cause he juggles his time between _fútbol, _capoeira, work, and school." Kimiko looked amused as she studied his face, taking in the handsome, but extremely cocky smile. "Omi is teaching him a little Tai Chi 'cause of a little bet they had, so they're out in the yard a lot. The yard is a very used place in our house because _todos_ _sabemo' _some kind of martial art."

After a pause to allow Kimiko to process the information, the hispanic moved onto the next one after she'd decided that her friend had enough info about Raimundo, pointing to a boy with shaggy, overgrown hair that seemed unable to decide whether it wanted to be straight or wavy. Kimiko noted he had a nice smile and a really cool pair of headphones around his neck. "Kaiki. 14. _El payaso numbero dos_. Rai's partner-in-crime when it comes to pranking. Can spend hours upon hours talking about _absolutamente __nada__. _The guy can make anyone and their mother laugh. Sweet kid, but don't call him Kaiki: call him K or Ki. He gets mad if you call him Kaiki." She nodded and took note of that. "Otherwise, we usually go to him for entertainment recommendations. He loves cartoons and anime, so be careful before he bombards you with questions about _Japão;_ he's always wanted to go, but _mãe_ told him we couldn't afford it." Kimiko grimaced. _Fun._ "He works too, like the rest of us older than ten."

"Ka... What?" Kimiko looked lost. "How do you even spell that?"

"K-A-I-K-I," Mari spelled out for her.

"Then wouldn't it be Kai-key?" Keiko asked. Mari shook her head and looked at them seriously, grabbing Keiko's face with her hands. The girl blinked.

"Forget that you're Japanese, Kimiko. And Keiko, forget you're Japanese-American. Believe that you're Brazilians for a second." Keiko and Kimiko gave her a strange look. "_¡Por Dios!_ Just do it with me for a second!" Forcing out a huff, Kimiko and Keiko glared at her together. Mari simply grinned at them. "It's pronounced 'Kah-ee-key'. A vowel is always a new syllable in Spanish and Portuguese."

"... You couldn't have just said that?" Kimiko asked. Mari glared at her, giving her a look that reminded her that she didn't have to do this if she didn't want to. Giving a resigned sigh, Kimiko held her hands up in surrender. It was her idea that Mari give her the run-down. "Okay, okay. Who's next?" Grinning, Mari shifted through her pictures quickly.

Next, came a pretty, young girl with long, loosely hair that went down to her waist, framing her circular and pretty face. She noted the girl's thin, heart-shaped mouth with a strong dive in the peak of her upper lip. "Nathalia. 11. The diva-in-making. She's working with _Mamãe_ to get her a modeling contract." Mari rolled her eyes and made an extravagant sweeping motion. "Total _dramatica._ Loves makeovers and keeping up-to-date with pop-culture. Is a walking make-up encyclopedia. Don't get her wrong, though. She's good company when you're bored. The girl has a talent for making people laugh. Very cute. Call her Nat." Kimiko tried to keep up, furiously keeping notes. Keiko stifled a laugh. "She recently became _obsesionada con_ yoga and healthy eating and caring about the environment and all that _porquería. _It's really annoying when she comes into the kitchen and starts yelling over oil. Oil, of all things!"

"Mari!" Keiko yelled.

She blinked and shook her head. "_Perdon_. I get on rants when people mess with _mi comida._" The other two shook their heads at her. Kimiko couldn't help but to notice that they were all some shade of olive-skinned, a bit or a lot lighter than Mari, with healthy brown hair and various-colored green eyes. The oldest particularly caught her interest with that pretty smile and those deep, handsome eyes...

She snapped back to focus when she saw Mari reaching for more pictures, not looking to get rudely awakened twice in one day. "Here comes the fun part. _Los adotados._" Mari smirked. "_¿Lista_?"

"Ready!" Kimiko said confidently.

Mari slapped down a picture of a handsome Asain boy with long black hair that went way past his shoulders, a thin, almost fox-like face, heavily slanted, honey-colored eyes, and lightly tanned skin to the left of Raimundo. "Their first _adotado._ Shinki. The oldest of the pack. 21. Adopted when he was only 4. Japanese. College-boy; mechanical engineering major and works in an autoshop to make some extra cash. He can fix _casi todo._ Anything that breaks down in the house gets shoved at him. It definitely saves us _dinhero._ Hardly ever sleeps. SERIOUS _mariposón; _he occasionally comes home with a new chick after some partying when he knows _mãe e pai_ are in bed. We tease him sometimes, but don't really say much to get him in trouble and he always makes sure she's out of the house by dawn. Trained as a Kenpo fighter from before he was adopted and refused to let his training go to waste, so _pai_ fincanced his training. He and Rai get along well. They spar sometimes in the yard and hang out together a lot. Call him Shin, Kiki, Shinny. He doesn't really care. Just never call him pretty." Keiko gasped and snatched up the picture.

"He's hot! Can I have him, Mari?"

"Off _meu irmão_!" Mari scolded playfully, putting the picture back, leaving a pouting Keiko in her wake. Kimiko felt a little relieved; at least she wouldn't be the only Asian in the house jam-packed with Latin Americans.

Mari placed a quick picture of herself between Rai and K and grinned. "No need to tell you what you already know. By the way, I'm the fourth of the _Adotados._" Kimiko rolled her eyes and urged her on. They'd given up the idea of focusing on eating - picking at their food - in favor of the fill-in for the sake of time, deeming this information far more important.

Taking a quick drink of her water to quench her thirst, Mari pulled out another picture of a yellow-skinned boy with a very large, bald head and nine little white dots arranged in a square tattooed on his forehead and placed it between herself and K. _Scratch that. Make that two other Asians._ "_Isto é_ Omi. 12. The most recent of the _adotados_. He's chinese and we picked him up from a temple straight out of China. Don't comment on _su cabeza_. It's like asking for hell on Earth. He explodes and starts yelling in Chinese." Pausing for dramatic effect, Mari continued. "Oh. My. God," she said, rolling her eyes. "His ego has _su _own _órbita_. He's a nice kid, but he's extremely immature for his age. He's obsessed with training and is usually up at dawn, working his little _chino_ ass off. He's the one that forced Rai into more fight training in Tai Chi when _pobre Raimundo_ lost a bet he was bound to lose. It's definitely worth some entertainment to see them arguing. Omi tries to bother Shinki from time to time to get him to spar with him, but all 'Ki does is push him back with the bottom of his foot until Omi gets annoyed. The little guy _hates_ it."

"I can only imagine!" Keiko exclaimed. "But is he really that good of a fighter?"

Mari eyed her suspiciously. "Omi or Shin?"

She fluttered her eyelashes innocently. "Both?" Kimiko rolled her eyes and pushed Keiko away with Mari.

"_En tu suenos_, _chica. _He's _demaciado_ _viejo_ for you. My brother is not going to jail for pedophilia _por ti_." Keiko pouted as Kimiko nudged Mari under the table with her foot, giving her a look that said to hurry up and continue. Mari shook her head and turned to her little pile of pictures.

Finally, Mari placed a picture of two high-cheekboned, carmel-skinned girls with identical faces and mildly slanted light brown eyes after Nathalia. "Micky and Layla. The second and third of the _Adotados._ 9. Adopted when they were 7 months old. Egyptian, but they might as well be _Brasileiras_. _Elas são muito atléticas_. Micky used to do gymnastics up until she was five, _pero_ she discovered freerunning and she basically started going around, practicing that instead." Mari shrugged lightly. "Though she's been trying to get in on some jiu jitsu and capoeria action. Very flexible and loves to show it. Layla prefers Muay Thai." Mari paused. "_Cuidado, Kimi._ _La chica_ packs a _serio_ punch and has a really bad temper. Don't go picking fights with her. She put K in the hospital _por_ _dos dias_ after he misplaced her favorite toy." Kimiko gave her a 'are you serious?' look and Mari responded with a slight nod. "They're both a pair of little tomboys. Nathalia spends _eternidad y un dia_ trying to get them into skirts." Kimiko gave Mari another look. The Hispanic merely shrugged. "_¿Qué digo?_ We're a colorful bunch." She continued, "Layla still has _terrores de noche_ and sometimes sneaks into my room to sleep with me after a _pesadelo_. They're quiet sleepers otherwise."

Kimiko took all of this in, trying to remember it all. All the information being given at one time was overwhelming, but she was determined to know her new family! "Ready for the last one?" Mari asked, smiling softly. Kimiko nodded with resolution.

"You go, Kimi," Keiko cheered, amused by the whole thing.

Last, came a round and cubby black boy with a large and puffy afro and a positively adorable smile. "Andre." Mari looked at her friend softly, obviously close to the subject, waiting for a signal to move on. Kimiko nodded with finality. "5. _O Bebê_. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, babies him. He's a little _encantador_. Loves to charm people out of the things he likes with his arsenal of cute. Puppy-dog eyes and sullen pouts are his most deadly weapons." Mari looked at her seriously. "Don't fall for it." Kimiko gave her a strange look, but nodded slowly anyway. "He loves tagging along on things."

And now Kimiko knew what the soft and affectionate looks were about. She looked at the picture to get a good look at the baby and her look softened. "He's adorable, Mari."

"The cutest," Keiko agreed before she sighed and rested a hand on her cheek. "Kimi, I'm jealous. Mari's family sounds like a lot of fun and you get to live with them.

"A lot of fun?" Mari laughed dryly, putting away all of her pictures. "More like a lot of a headache."

Kimiko offered, "And maybe we can arrange sleepovers?" At the mention of sleepovers, Keiko instantly cheered up in time for the bell.

"We'll see about that," Mari told Kimiko and Keiko, standing and putting her bag onto her shoulder as they mirrored the action.

Kimiko told them, "I'll see you guys later. Time for more boring classes!"

The other two gave a not-so-enthusiastic cheer. "Hooray!" Kimiko couldn't help but to laugh as she turned around… and ran smack-dab into a wall of flesh, sending both of them crashing back.

"Aye, watch where you're going," the male voice complained as she was left rubbing her backside from the impact.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** D: I can't believe it. Close to 5,600 words of this crap. ._. I guess that means I'm enjoying it? Please review to give opinions (and maybe tell me if you think that I'm being a total rip-off and should stop or continue going). On a side note, go check out Zoerz's story! Nothing's as good as the original! And I know Mari commanded a lot of attention this chapter, but only to get you guys used to her and so she can do her _thang_ as a catalyst. ;)


	2. Hello, Goodbye

**A/N:** So I'm really sorry, guys. This took a while because I had a… uh… kind of a hissy fit over the lack of reviews. I'm a scathing perfectionist at times and this was definitely a moment. I calmed down and figured that, although nice, I shouldn't get a big head over something so trivial like reviews. My story should speak for me. *Breathes* But yeah. I was about to just completely tear down and rewrite chapter 1, but decided against it if it was going to be for the wrong reasons.

And ugh… the dreaded 'baka'. Then again, some words… just don't work. And umm... Yeah. No JP. JP is now Kaiki. :D

**Disclaimers and Citations:**

Xiaolin Showdown is most definitely not mine. Respective characters belong to their owners. The book quoted is _Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side_ by Beth Fantaskey. Layla is a character concept borrowed from Kidd Death, used with permission. The story concept is partially borrowed from Zoerz, also used with permission.

* * *

><p><em>Kimiko told them, "I'll see you guys later. Time for more boring classes!"<em>

_The other two gave a not-so-enthusiastic cheer. "Hooray!" Kimiko couldn't help but to laugh as she turned around… and ran smack-dab into a wall of flesh, sending both of them crashing back._

_"Aye, watch where you're going," the male voice complained as she was left rubbing her backside from the impact._

~*At the present*~

"Raimundo!" Mari exclaimed, helping her brother up as Keiko did the same for their friend. Kimiko stared at him blankly as he brushed himself off and looked down at his sister.

Pictures did not do this boy justice. He was definitely photogenic, but there was a life… an aura that he expelled when he was in the flesh that a mere photograph would be unable to properly channel. Her eyes followed the contours of his messily spiked off hair, cropped behind his surprisingly small ears. In a sort of dazed fascination, she watched as he scratched the back of his neck and then the situation clicked. Her fists balled angrily, Kimiko pulled back her arm and slammed her knuckles into his shoulder.

"_Merda,_" he swore in Portuguese, turning to glare at her. "Damn, girl! You don't think that hurts?" Raimundo rubbed the spot where she'd punched him, not looking pleased. Kimiko scowled and pointed a finger at him threateningly, standing at her full height of 4'10". "Don't tell _me_ to watch where _I'm_ going, buster." She poked her finger into his chest harshly. "_You_ watch where _you're _going."

To her utter amazement, he started _laughing_. The _audacity_ of this boy!

"What are you laughing at?" she demanded, glaring. She spared a quick glance for Mari, silently asking what was wrong with her brother. Mari shrugged her shoulders lightly, hiding her amusement for Kimiko's sake, knowing that if she laughed, the girl redirect her irritation at her. Keiko, however, was doubled over to the side, laughing her butt off silently.

Raimundo looked back at Mari, who was standing at his side. "_Oi, esta é a garota que está movendo em?_"

"_Sim. Tenha cuidado para não agravar a ela. Kimiko fique furioso é pior do que Layla. Menos ela somente socos e você fica sobre ele,_" Mari told him with a grin. Raimundo started to laugh again, but was promptly interrupted by another punch to both his and Mari's shoulders.

"OW!"

"You know it's rude to talk about people in another language they can't understand, right?" Kimiko asked, crossing her arms over her chest. She glared at Mari, especially. She could tolerate the occasional word and phrase here and there, but this was annoying. Her temper was already sparked and crackling. "I'm smart enough to know my own name."

Giggling, Mari hugged Kimiko tightly. "_Mi amor,_ you are so cute when you're mad." She nuzzled her head affectionately with her cheek and made her look at her. "I was telling Rai to apologize to you," she lied effortlessly, "before I sick Layla on his sorry Brazilian ass."

Raimundo gave her a crazy look. "Yeah. And like I was about to say: Girl, you're out of your mi- _merda!_" he swore, recoiling from the pain of having Mari's heel crush his foot and dig in. The siblings glared at each other.

"_Pedes desculpas!_" she snapped. Kimiko huffed. There they went again. She was losing her patience.

"_Ela esbarrou em mim!_" he argued back.

"_E?_" she asked expectantly, crossing her arms. "_Raimundo, ela vai estar vivendo com nós. __O mínimo que você pode fazer é ser agradável._"

"Hello?"

They looked down at Kimiko. "Hi. You realized I was still here, right?" Keiko rubbed her friend's shoulders, muttering for her to calm down in Japanese. Kimiko ignored her and placed her hands on her hips.

"One sec, Kim," Mari told her. She turned back to Raimundo and gripped his shirt threateningly. _"Se você não se desculpar em 20 segundos, eu juro que vou dizer a mãe quem 'deslocada' sua caneca favorita."_

Recognizing a lost argument when it found him, Raimundo shot his sister an irritated look and pulled himself away from her. He sighed, almost literally swallowing his pride, and faced Kimiko, who looked back up at him. He gave a sudden smirk, to her confusion. Like hell he was going to go down so easily. "Sorry you're such a klutz."

Mari and Keiko face-palmed as Kimiko bristled in newfound anger. She stepped forward and punched his gut with all her strength in a fit of fury. "_Baka!_" she hissed, enraged by the nerve on him. And she had to deal with him while she was living in their house? He'd best hope he stayed _clear_ out of her way.

As Raimundo doubled over and clutched his abdomen in pain, his friend finally coming over to help him, Kimiko's own friends pulled her out of the way and to class, which they were all late for.

"She's frikkin' crazy!" Raimundo complained as Jermaine helped him up. He gripped his stomach and winced. She really does hit hard.

Placing an arm around his friend's shoulders, Jermaine supported him. "You ok, man?"

"I guess…" he muttered sullenly. He glared at the African-American. "What took you so long to back me up?"

"Rai. Dawg. It's your sister. All o'em are crazy as hell," he justified, holding his free hand up defensively. "We can be homies, but I sure as hell ain't taken' a punch like that fo' yo ass." Raimundo shoved his friend off irritably the instant he started to laugh at his expense. "You ain't gotta be so salty, bro."

"Shut the hell up and get in line," he grumbled, crossing his arms. He was honestly annoyed by the whole ordeal. Jermaine placed a comforting arm around the Brazilian's shoulders.

"Man…" he started with a sigh, looking down. Raimundo looked satisfied that his friend was finally being a good one. His hopes were shattered with the next sentence. "She really kicked yo' sorry ass!" Jermaine grinned gleefully before he started laughing again. Raimundo scowled and punched the other boy's chest, interrupting his laughter momentarily, but not putting an end to the suppressed snickers. Rolling his eyes, Raimundo promptly ignored the Brooklyn native as they got their lunch and went to join their other friends.

**~*At the same time*~**

"He's a jerk!"

"_Yo se,_ Kimi," Mari soothed, knowing that when this girl was upset, it was best to simply smile and nod. "I live with him."

"And so will I!" she moaned in anguish, pacing back and forth in the hallway. The late bell had rung about five minutes ago, but they figured that if they were already late, they could be a little later. Kimiko started to hit her head against the lockers.

Keiko pulled her head away from the metal. "Stop that," she scolded. "You'll give yourself a concussion." Kimiko glared at her. Keiko simply glared back. "Am I hearing right?" Looking at her blankly, Kimiko was too angry to really listen and acted disinterested. "Are you _really_ going to let some _makeinu_ let _you_ get all hot and bothered?" Keiko demanded. Mari caught wind of what Keiko was doing and just observed for once.

Kimiko continued to stare blankly at her best friend. Keiko huffed and gripped her shoulders, glaring at her straight in the eyes. "He's a stupid boy, Kimi. He may live with Mari, but that doesn't mean you have to pay any mind to his stupidity. Where's tough-girl-Tohomiko?" Keiko asked, shaking her slightly. "The one that broke Dyris's nose freshman year because she called you a bear-faced cunt?"

The blue-eyed girl blinked back her anger as she recalled the incident. A slow, sadistic smile spread on her face while she remembered the satisfaction of hearing the blonde's nose crunch under her fist. "She deserved it," Kimiko reminded her.

"Exactly." Keiko placed her hands on her hips. "So stop getting all worked up over some shit-faced Brazilian pretty-boy with no sense of respect."

"_Oye!_" Mari protested, interrupting. "Love you guys and I know he's a pain in the ass, but he's still my brother. No insults. I wouldn't let him do it to you guys either, so be nice."

"Sorry," Keiko apologized briefly. "But let's get to class. We're already fifteen minutes late."

Kimiko sighed as they started walking. "Fine, Mari. I'll try to play nice with him."

With a squeal of glee, the Hispanic hugged her tightly. "That's all I could ever ask for, _princesa._" Kimiko smiled and broke off their hug to walk into her classroom.

"I'll see you after school."

"It's a date!"

Kimiko smiled and walked into her classroom before she sighed. She sincerely hoped Raimundo was not an indication of how she'd be with the rest of the family.

**~*Afterschool*~**

"Sure this is everything?" Keiko asked, wiping sweat off her forehead. All that week, they'd been helping Kimiko pack, but this was where all the heavy-lifting came in. Knowing this, all three had changed into more comfortable clothing that they'd left at Kimiko's house the last few times they'd come.

Kimiko mentally checked off all of her possessions and nodded. "I think so!"

Mari collapsed on Kimiko's bare mattress, panting. "_Diablo, chica._ You have a lot of heavy crap!" she teased, smirking. Kimiko glared at her and threw one of her loose pillows at her. Mari squealed and caught it before throwing it back. "I was just saying!"

Keiko rolled her eyes and started taping some of the boxes shut. "Get ready for some more heavy-lifting, Mari."

"_Otra ves?_" she whined. "You two only like be because of my muscles!" Laughing, Kimiko walked over and plopped down on the bed beside the hispanic.

"Come on, Mari. You're the man of our trio. The only one cut out to be lifting all this crap. We're so tiny in comparison to your raw power," she soothed, giggling a little. Being with Keiko and Mari at home was doing wonders for her nerves. She'd come to terms with the fact that the Pedrosas may or may not like her, but she would at least have three important allies in the house: Mari and her parents.

Tying her hair up and out of her face, Mari made a face. "Blah, blah. Both of you suck," she snorted in her familiar accent.

"She speaks without a word of Spanish or Portuguese!" Keiko gasped in mock amazement.

Mari glared at her and held up her fists threateningly, taking mock swings at the honey-blonde. "Wanna take 'dis outside, _niña_?"

Keiko puffed out her chest and slapped it playfully with a giant grin on her face. "Bring it."

"Hey, hey! Break it up you two," Kimiko laughed, standing between them. "We have boxes to tape." Both Keiko and Mari threw a pillow at her.

"_Si!_"

"Yours!"

Kimiko laughed as she rolled off her bed, sliding onto the floor. Keiko and Mari leaned over the bed to help her up, giggling themselves. They looked up as they heard Kimiko's door open. "Are you girls all done?"

"Almost, Papa," Kimiko told him as she reoriented herself. Toshiro smiled at her.

"Tell me when you're ready. I wish to take the three of you out for a treat."

At "treat", Keiko and Mari instantly perked up and grinned brightly. "Will do, Mr./_Señor _Tohomiko!" they echoed. He laughed. "You are a pair of funny girls." The older man smiled at his daughter again. "The movers will take everything down to the truck and to the Pedrosa home. Do not worry about it."

"_Hai,_ Papa," she told him as he closed the door behind him. After a pause, the three looked at each other. Kimiko smirked mischeviously. "Ready to tape these boxes like there's no tomorrow and then go stuff our faces with food?"

"Hell yeah!" her friends cheered, pumping their fists. And before they knew it, the boxes were secured and ready to be moved, forgotten as the three dressed back into their nicer clothes in order to run down the stairs to meet Kimiko's father at the front door. He smiled at them and lead all of them to the car in order to start their night out.

Somewhere in between their dinner, Mari and Keiko excused themselves in order to give Kimiko and her father some time alone. Toshiro rested his elbows on the table, leaning towards his daughter. "Kimiko...?"

"_Hai?_" she asked, putting down her fork and looking up at him.

"Please be safe while I'm gone."

She gave him a strange look and laughed a bit. "Papa, I'll be with Mari and her family. I don't see how I'll be in danger with them."

He smiled wryly. "I know. Call it an old man's sentiments, but I would like you to promise me that you'll be cautious at all times."

Sparing him another strange look and more than a few suspicious thoughts, Kimiko rose a brow but nodded. "I will, Papa." She reached over the table and held his hand. "And I'll miss you."

Toshiro smiled softly. "I will miss you too, _koibito._"

Smiling back, Kimiko drew back her hand and resumed eating in a comfortable silence until her friends came back. Mari laughed and made a joke about the line to the ladies' room being ridiculously long and Keiko, being Keiko, corrected her and scolded her for over-exaggerating everything. Kimiko smiled to herself as she watched her friends argue quietly, glad with the knowledge that she made the right decision when she said she would stay. However, the night ended a little too quickly for her liking. Dropping Keiko off at home with a good night and a bag of leftovers, the ebony-haired girl drew in a deep, ragged breath. _Showtime_, she thought to herself nervously.

Mari laid a hand on her shoulder and whispered, "_Relajete, amor._ They'll adore you. Nathalia has talked about nothing except you and Andre keeps asking where his new big sister is."

That made Kimiko giggle. She gave Mari a warm smile. "Alright. I'll relax."

Returning her smile, her friend slinked back into her seat. Toshiro grabbed his daughter's hand and ran his thumb on the backside of it comfortingly. Kimiko felt a good feeling swell in her heart and gripped his hand back.

"_Aqui_," Mari told her friend's father, pointing out the worn villa.

"Right here," Kimiko breathed as they rolled to a stop in front of the iron gate. She turned to her father and gave him a large, tearful hug. "Have a safe trip to Tokyo, Papa." He hugged her back.

"I will. Now, go. They're expecting you."

With a small nod and a good-bye kiss, she gingerly stepped out of the car to meet up with Mari, who held the gate open for her. Kimiko paused as she heard her father drive off and looked up at the building. It was in the outskirts of their town, rested on top of a small hill. Foliage covered the expanses of the area and ivy crept up the pale, cracked yellow walls of the two-story villa. Several pillars supported the decorated arches and she looked to the side to see a mini-play park, complete with a swing-set, monkey bars, a simple metal slide, and a small sand-box. She looked to the other side to see a training-dummy and briefly remembered that, in this household, almost everyone was versed in some form of martial art. _I can pick back up on Judo,_ she mused, eyes running over the small chunks of grass uplifted by disturbances assumed to be practice, her eyes fell on the paved path that she assumed lead to the backyard. Her curiosity piqued at some up-turned and cracked stones.

"Like what you see?" Mari teased gently, smiling at her.

Kimiko looked up and smiled. "Yeah. It's... a lot grander than I remember."

"'Cause I was in a hurry to get you guys inside," she laughed. "Ready to go in?"

Taking a deep breath, Kimiko nodded and braced herself as Mari turned and walked towards the front door, assuming that her friend was following. Kimiko stood behind her as she opened the door and called out, "_Todos, estamos em casa!"_

Kimiko held her breath as the pounding of feet signaled everyone coming to meet them.

**~*End*~**

**A/N:** And that concludes our second chapter. I don't know about you guys, but I like this a lot more than the first one. And by the next chapter, expect OC art. :3 I want you guys to know what everyone looks like. (Canons look pretty much the same, except... older, of course.) Umm... Reviews are nice.

.-.


	3. Welcome to the Family

**A/N:** Chapter three. :3 I'd like to thank all my reviewers: Xiaolin Fan, ColossalRay, XboneX (especially you. You are quickly climbing my awesome cookie list), hitachiintwinsfan989, Zoerz, and StarPurpleandBlue (I tried to PM you, but it's disabled. D: I wanted to say yesssss to the offer, but then I remembered that I have a Brazilian friend with quick access. *Facepalm* Failure. But I have Spanish down.)

And before you all ask (already had someone do so, lol) No. I don't stalk people (much) to make my characters. I just happen to be a very experienced role-player, so I worked on these characters until they had that reality factor. *Runs around*

TT_TT You guys keep a wench like me happy and less nit-picky.

So Kim meets the family. :3 Fun. (By the way... I HATE doing multi-character interactions. They're annoying to keep up with. lol.)

FREEZE! Before you move on, here is the picture I promised you all: http :/ /i835. photobucket .com / albums/zz280/HanaDaKitsune/scan .jpg - Obviously get rid of the spaces. I didn't post it on DeviantArt because a) it's not really worthy of being posted and b) I'm not looking to lure in readers with pretty pictures. lmao.

**Disclaimers and Citations:**

Xiaolin Showdown is most definitely not mine. Respective characters belong to their owners. Layla is a character concept borrowed from Kidd Death, used with permission. The story concept is partially borrowed from Zoerz, also used with permission.

* * *

><p><em>Kimiko looked up and smiled. "Yeah. It's... a lot grander than I remember."<em>

_"'Cause I was in a hurry to get you guys inside," she laughed. "Ready to go in?"_

_Taking a deep breath, Kimiko nodded and braced herself as Mari turned and walked towards the front door, assuming that her friend was following. Kimiko stood behind her as she opened the door and called out, "Todos, estamos em casa!"_

_Kimiko held her breath as the pounding of feet signaled everyone coming to meet them._

~*Homecoming*~

Still holding her breath and bracing herself nervously for the welcoming party, Kimiko numbly looked around at the entrance hall, glancing at the old-style chandelier and the various ethnic paintings and flowers in vases scattered and pressed against the walls. Mari held her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Kimiko released her breath and smiled before squeezing back. Her friend grinned as the first of the crowd came to greet them.

"Mariana Pedrosa, do you know what time it is?" Yaritza yelled in good humor, wiping off her hands with a wash-cloth.

"_Desculpe, mãe,_" she laughed, stepping forward to hug the middle-aged woman tightly. "Kimiko's daddy took us out to eat."

At the mention of Kimiko, Yaritza looked behind her daughter. "Kimiko!" she exclaimed, quickly releasing Mari in favor of going to give the Japanese native a large hug. Kimiko grinned, her small arms wrapping around the Brazilian's full and maternal waist, feeling her hip-length, wavy, brown hair, and smelling the scent of spices and all sorts of food. She always loved hugging this woman. It was like hugging the incarnation of kindness.

"Mari!" A small little figure of mostly brown and blue raced up and hugged his sister. Mari started to laugh and pulled the small boy onto her hip. He sucked his small and dark thumb and looked over to their mother, noticing Kimiko. He looked at Mari and whispered rather loudly, his thumb still in mouth, "Ith dat my new big thister?"

"_Sim, _Andre," Yaritza told him, walking over and taking him from Mari. "_Seu nome é Kimiko_."

"Kimiko?" he asked, looking up at his mother, who nodded.

Mari nudged him. "Go say _olá._" She grinned as the little boy ran to her friend and peered up at her. Kimiko looked back down and smiled, squatting down. Andre blinked at her, thumb still in mouth, before he finally spoke. "_Olá_."

"_Olá_," Kimiko returned, still smiling. Andre smirked, took his thumb out of his mouth, and wrapped his arms around her waist. Pleasantly surprised, Kimiko looked up at Mari with a smile. Mari winked back at her and looked over her shoulder.

"_Kaiki e Nathalia! _Stop hiding behind the door!" she scolded.

"Busted," Kaiki grumbled, rubbing behind his head.

Looking up, Kimiko blanched at the sheer _height_ of the boy. He was very obviously over six feet tall and was extremely lanky, his long limbs moving with a sort of trained grace. His frizzed and puffed hair somewhat curled around his face and she noticed a pair of blue and red headphones around his neck. She looked down and saw his sister, about Mari's height, and saw her push some of her straight brown hair behind her ear with thin and delicate hands.

Nathalia took the initiative first and walked over to Kimiko and Andre. "Umm... _Olá_," the girl muttered, looking away rather shyly.

"Hello," Kimiko told her, standing up with Andre now on her hip. "I'm Kimiko." She held out her hand with a pleasant smile. "You must be Nathalia." Looking at her, Nathalia took her hand and smiled back.

"Call me Nat," she told her before looking at her brother. "That's Kaiki. We call him Ki." Kimiko looked over to him and waved. Kaiki sheepishly waved back, grinning a small smile.

Yaritza smiled at all of this and yelled out, "Michelle! Layla! _Venha aqui!_"

Hearing a pair of identical groans, Kimiko looked at the door and saw two small girls with faces as similar as their groans. _The twins,_ Kimiko thought to herself as they walked over to her. Close to the same height with the girls being a few inches shorter, Kimiko waved at them. Micky – or Layla. She couldn't really tell the difference yet – opened her mouth and said, "You're pretty short for sixteen. You sure you're not Nat's age?" Mari started to laugh from where she was.

"Layla!" Yaritza scolded. "_Pedes desculpas!_"

If this were anime, a vein would've popped out on Kimiko's head in her irritation. She gritted her teeth in a forced smile. "No. I'm sixteen alright."

The other twin nudged her sister. "Obviously she's not Nat's age." She gripped her chest. "Nat has no boobs."

"Well hers aren't all that big either," the one she figured was now Layla wondered aloud. The other twin looked at her and rubbed her chin. "Huh. You're right."

Turning red in embarrassment and anger, Kimiko clenched her fists. Just as Mari was going to interveen, another, very suave and smooth voice cut in. "Micky; Layla, I hope you're not bullying our newest addition." Mari looked up and slapped her hand over her face.

"Shin, thank god. I thought I was gonna have to hit these little _mocosas._" Protests from the girls: "HEY!" "We're NOT booger-faces!"

Shinki smirked and pinched Micky's nose playfully. "Wipe your nose, Micky. You have some snot running out." She glared at him and sniffed up any supposed "snot" that would've been coming out.

He stood back up and Kimiko really got a good look at him. If Keiko were here, she would've screamed and swooned on the spot. Like he-who-would-not-be-named-because-she-still-didn't-like-him, this was another brother that pictures could not capture the essence of. He had a mannerism of pure silk and pomp rather than the lively, energetic aura of his brother. Her eyes ran over his glossy black hair, tied at the base of his neck and falling down to his waist, almost longer than Yaritza's own impossibly long hair. This grace about him... it... was almost feminine, while still being vaguely masculine. Shinki smiled handsomely and held his hand out to her.

"_Kanari_..." she muttered before she could stop herself.

A vein practically popped on his 'pretty' head, his expressing flashing into one of irritation. "I understand Japanese, you know."

Almost dropping Andre in how quickly her hands flew to her mouth, Kimiko's eyes widened as everyone else started laughing. "Oh my God! I'm so sorry! I didn-"

Holding up a hand to silence her, Shinki rubbed the bridge of his nose, soothing out his own irritation before he sighed and calmed down. He cleared his throat and, out of politeness, bowed, his hair sliding down like a waterfall with him. "_Kangei._"

She gave her own small bow back. "_Arigatō._"

Mari rolled her eyes and slapped his back, knocking Shinki over, and effectively breaking the atmosphere. "Come on, Shinki. You were raised by Brazilians. _Se que estabas en_ Japan _por_ the last two years, but stop being so formal and give the girl a damn hug." Obviously irritated, Shinki stood upright and pushed his sister down onto her butt.

"Mind your own business, _entrometia_," he said in a mocking Spanish, crossing his arms over his chest. Mari fixed her glasses and glared up at her brother before she swept-kicked him, getting annoyed when he simply jumped over her legs, flashing her a toothy grin. Micky and Layla were in the background, laughing at the girl's expense. Kimiko simply looked bemused, helping her friend off the floor.

"Shinki! Mariana! That's enough!" Yaritza scolded, slapping both their shoulders. Shinki winced, still grinning.

"_Mãe__,_" Mari whined, rubbing her shoulder. "Not in front of Kimiko." The woman smirked and tapped her forehead with her finger.

"Then stop acting like a child with your brother and show the girl to your room." She looked at the other siblings. "And _vocês, bagunceiros_, to your rooms. Omi and Raimundo are walking Bandido and Luna, but they'll be back soon." Ignoring the groans from the younger four and the muffled laugh of the oldest, Yaritza turned back to the girls.

Mari asked her, "_E as suas coisas? _Did they get here?"

"Shinki and Kaiki already took them down to your room," Yaritza reassured her. "I locked it back up for you after they were done."

"_Muito obrigado, mã_e!" Mari yelled over her shoulder as she dragged a slightly dazed Kimiko off to their room, pulling her down the stairs and into what would be the basement. "Home sweet home," she told her, opening the door with her key and exposing all of the boxes mixed with all of her own belongings.

"You're in the... basement?"

"Recent change," Mari told her, closing the door and locking it. "My old room wasn't big enough for all my mannequins and fabric rolls, so once Omi moved in, I asked if he could have my old room and I would move down here. Pai talked it over with M_ã_e and here we are!" she finished, collapsing on her bed. "A whole basement all to me. All I had to do was pay for most of the customization with some money I had saved up. Pai paid for the basic repairs."

Kimiko looked at the boxes piled up. "... I don't know about you, but I'm not looking forward to unpacking." Mari looked up and checked everything in the room.

"Well... You kind of can't unpack yet; _Os meninos_ haven't assembled your furniture." Kimiko deadpanned, slapping her palm against her forehead before groaning audibly.

"They would!"

Mari grinned and held up her second pillow, patting the mattress playfully. "We have _opción numbero dos_."

"Just try to keep your drool on your side of the bed this time," Kimiko teased, smirking lightly.

"Only if you don't snore _como un oso_," she retorted snootily, upturning her nose into the air. Both girls looked at each other for a second before they both started laughing. Mari, still giggling, rubbed her eyes and yawned. "We should get ready for bed, _amorsito;_ we have school tomorrow."

Kimiko yawned sleepily. "Yeah... I'll go take a bath."

Mari stood at her vanity, taking out the contacts from her eyes, blinking as the world turned fuzzy. She looked to the side at the fuzz she knew was Kimiko and nodded. "Go ahead. Borrow one of my PJ's for tonight since yours are still in boxes. The bathroom's upstairs on the second floor of the house, at the end of the hallway to the left."

"Try not to trip over the crap in this room, bat-girl," Kimiko smirked again, digging out a night-shirt and a towel that she would borrow. "I don't want you hurting yourself on things that aren't there."

Narrowing her eyes, Mari pointed a brush in her friend's general direction. "_Oyeme, mocosit-"_

"I'm about six inches to the left."

Blushing red, she adjusted her aim accordingly, scowling heavily. "AS I WAS SAYING!" she yelled. "_Oyeme, mocosita._ I am not THAT blind!" She shoved her glasses onto her face. "Now stop making fun of me! It's _no_ nice."

Laughing, the Asian turned out of the room. "Whatever you say, Mari!" Kimiko whistled to herself as she walked upstairs, following the directions her friend gave her. For a first meeting, everything turned out pretty well. Thankfully, she hadn't been the center of attention, courtesy of a certain dark-skinned brunette. Kimiko mused to herself, suspecting Mari of intentionally distracting everyone because she knew she was nervous. The girl was, at the very least, really good at bailing her out of awkward situations, even at the expense of her own dignity. Smiling warmly, Kimiko hugged her stuff to herself and walked into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. She stripped down, letting her hair loose and shaking out the stresses of the day. She turned the shower on and felt the water, waiting until it was just the right temperature to step in. Her eyes closed, Kimiko smiled to herself as she let the temporary hair color wash out of her hair along with all of her random thoughts that came with the shower.

That brand of hair dye was a very good reason why she was glad of her father's connections: no mess, easy application, and even the light colors simply coated over her ebony black hair, not showing a hint of it. It was the latest in cosmetic technology and her father was influential enough to help his daughter get her hands on an amazing assortment of colors. She slowly frowned as she picked up the soap. She'd miss her father and she knew it. _Yeah... He's a phone call away,_ she thought to herself, _but it's not the same... I hope he'll be okay in Tokyo. Wait. What am I thinking? It's Papa. He's a tough man. He can take care of himself._ Lost in her thoughts, Kimiko idly showered, not in too much of a hurry.

~*At the front gate*~

Panting, Raimundo leaned on the iron gate, hands on his knees as he clutched the leash in his hands. He looked down at the white dog attached to the end of the leash and laughed weakly as it proceeded to cock its head at him and then roll onto its back, wiggling all four of its black-padded paws into the air, tongue hanging out and panting in the same exhaustion as the one holding its leash. Raimundo, still laughing a little, looked up to see Omi prancing about with another, smaller white dog. Omi had tried walking the other one, but it'd ended in disaster when Bandido started dragging the Chinese boy all over the place, a bushel of energy too large for so small a boy to handle. So they'd switched and he'd effectively worn the little Westie into submission, dispelling all of both his and the dog's excess energy.

"Raimundo!" Omi yelled out at him, running alongside their small-sized Maltese. "You are too weak! You should not be tired yet!"

"Oh yeah?" he shouted back. "Want _Bandido_ to drag your tiny butt all over the place again?" The Brazilian smirked when Omi blushed in embarrassment. Hearing his name, Bandido rolled back onto his stomach and sat on his butt, tail wagging and ears up-right and perky, a perpetual look of mischief in his large, black eyes.

"He is a moost worthy opponent, but I would have been victorious!" he yelled back. "... Eventually." Bandido gave one gruff and tough bark in Omi's direction and the child jumped, causing the other dog to look at him expectantly.

"Yeah, yeah, Omi. Just hurry up and bring Luna back. She looks worn out."

"But we haven't even climbed the gates yet!" he complained.

Raimundo slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Omi! She's a dog! She can't climb gates!"

Grumbling, Omi ran back with the smaller white dog. Bandido stood up in earnest, twitching enthusiastically and tail wagging violently as the smaller Maltese came towards him. He barked and jumped on his hind legs in excitement, tugging at his leash. "Woah, Bandido!" Raimundo called, pulling him back. "Stop that!" Sparing her fellow canine a side-long look, Luna snootily upturned her nose and trotted past him, curled tail puffed and chest swelled out as she pulled Omi towards the door. Bandido's ears drooped and pressed to his ears as he sat on his hind legs, front paws still curled to his chest. His heart-broken expression made Raimundo soften and he lifted the dog into his arms. Bandido looked at his owner sadly, long snout turned downwards.

"You'll get her next time, buddy. She's a little priss, but you'll impress her one of these days," Raimundo assured him as he rubbed behind one of the dog's ears. "She may be tiny with a cute little butt, but she doesn't know you, bro! You're rough, gruff, and cause a lot of trouble, but you're fun to be around, loyal, and too loving for anyone to hate you." Seemingly cheered by the pep talk, Bandido's ears perked and his tail started wagging again. He licked Raimundo's face as a thanks and squirmed to be put down. Laughing as he rubbed the spot where he was licked, Raimundo put the Westie down and jogged into the house. He closed the door and let Bandido off the leash, grinning as the dog dashed off into the house, running up the stairs. He slowly walked up, rubbing the back of his neck. Walking that dog really did make for good exercise. His head snapped up when he heard Bandido's erratic barking and the sequential feminine scream that accompanied it. He ran up the stairs, yelling, "BANDIDO!_ Pare com is-"_

Interrupted by someone crashing into him, he fell onto his butt and groaned, rubbing it.

"Get that dirty MUTT off my butt!" Kimiko yelled at him, fending off the barking dog with his teeth bared.

"Don't yell at me!" he hissed, pushing her off and grabbing Bandido, who continued to bark at the girl. "_Bandido! Cale a boca!_" The dog looked at him and gave one final, gruff and muffled bark before glaring at Kimiko. "And he's not a mutt!"

Shin"ki helped Kimiko up and brushed her off. "That's right," he agreed with his brother. "Our little trouble-maker is a pure-bred West Highland Terrier." Bandido gave the oldest brother a bright doggie grin and licked his lips as he tried to reach for the Japanese man. Shinki affectionately rubbed his ears. "Hey, boy. Causing trouble for the poor pretty lady?" The dog simply licked his hand.

"Where did you come from?" Raimundo asked dubiously.

"I heard the commotion from my room."

Mari then chose to appear, a sheepish smile on her face and a red tinge to her cheeks. She'd run up from the basement to see what was going on. "Sorry, Kim... I forgot to warn you about the dogs; they're new."

Kimiko said dryly, "Yeah... You did forget."

Mari pursed her lips and cleared her throat. "Umm... Kim?"

"Yeah?"

She leaned in and whispered, "Your panties are showing." Blushing beet red, Kimiko angrily pulled down her night shirt as the boys tried their hardest to not laugh. She snatched up her towel and stormed down to the basement, practically seething. Mari looked at her brothers and the three proceeded to start laughing, amused by everything. Bandido squirmed out of Raimundo's grip and jumped onto the floor, trotting off to go find something to do. Mari picked herself back up, giggling. "Shin, you should go get Bandido _y secalo_ for bed. I'll go find Luna."

Shinki ruffled his sister's hair. "Make sure Kimiko knows that Luna isn't quite as rowdy as Bandido."

She gave him a thumbs-up. "_Si._" Mari ran off.

Shinki clapped Raimundo's back. "You sure have luck with that Kimiko. Seems she already knows you."

"Shut up..."

* * *

><p>AN: So I endured terrible dizziness, cramps, and soul-crushing college rejection from a school I really liked to get this to you guys... Reviews would be nice... They'd make me feel at least a little better...


	4. Mornings

**A/N:** Excuse me for the long absence. :( I was kind of in a mini-block (and getting re-obsessed with Macross Frontier; Sheryl = best. female. chara. ever.) and kind of needed a jump-start. Thanks to everyone that's been reading thus far! (On a side note... Xiaolin Chronicles? Um... "YAY!" much?)

On a completely related note, have you guys ever been kissed by a maltese?

**DISCLAIMER:** Xiaolin Showdown is not and never will be mine. It's intellectual property of Christy Hui. Layla is a character concept borrowed from fellow fanficker Kidd Death. He's a personal friend of mine who gave me the A-okay!

* * *

><p><em>Shinki ruffled his sister's hair. "Make sure Kimiko knows that Luna isn't quite as rowdy as Bandido."<em>

_She gave him a thumbs-up. "Si." Mari ran off._

_Shinki clapped Raimundo's back. "You sure have luck with that Kimiko. Seems she already knows you."_

_"Shut up..."_

~*Insert Witty Chapter Name Here*~

_You've gotta be kidding me._ It's the only thing Kimiko could help but to think as she stared down the small, delicate, and white snout of yet another dog. The large and black eyes stared back in mild curiosity as the smaller and fluffier variety of canine regarded her with general disinterest, simply raising its head when she'd entered the room. Kimiko grimaced. _At least this one isn't trying to attack me. _After a few more seconds of staring, the dog lost interest in her and laid her head back down, her tail moving lazily and ears twitching around slightly. Kimiko wearily inched towards the dresser, keeping close to the wall. _Now where is my hairbrush...?_

"KIMIKO!"

"GAH!" _DAMN IT, MARI!_ Kimiko thought to herself as she fell to the floor.

Mari slammed the door shut, frantically moving about the room while the little dog on the bed had shot up on all fours immediately, excitingly barking out to get her friend's attention, spinning in circles and jumping about. "KIMI! Where are you?"

"OW! MARI!" she yelled from her place on the floor. "You're stepping on my finger!"

Mari yelped in surprise and immediately drew back before helping her up. "_Dios mio, Kimi._ I'm sooo sorry!"

"As sorry as you were thinking about your killer dog?" Kimiko asked dryly.

Mari cried, "I swear I forgot! _Se me olvido!_" She hugged her tightly as Kimiko took on an exasperated expression. There was no way she was gonna be able to stay mad at this girl, but she'd damn well put up a fight.

"You forgot about your own dog with teeth bigger than my pinky?" she demanded.

"It's that _Bandido_ is normally really friendly and he comes off too strongly on strangers. He only attacks you when he doesn't know you, but he gets used to people really fast!" she explained, ignoring the demanding barks from the bed.

"And this one?" Kimiko sighed.

"Harmless," Mari quipped quickly. "Cross my heart and swear to-"

"You don't have to do that," she interrupted, pushing her friend off and standing up. Mari quickly scrambled to her feet and swept up the little dog on the bed, who immediately started attacking her face with its tongue. "_Luna! Para!_" she laughed. She looked at Kimiko and held the dog out to her, grinning as Luna started sniffing and reaching towards her.

She sighed in resignition and took the dog into her arms, peering down at her. Luna craned her neck up and licked her nose, earning a look of surprise from Kimiko. Her tongue was soft and light, feeling almost like velvet, not rough and forceful like she'd expected. She lifted the maltese into a more comfortable position, feeling the soft fur that almost felt like hair, the swell of the dog's stomach and the rolls of fatty skin conforming into her fingers. She looked at Mari, rubbing Luna's silken floppy ears. "She feels like a really soft teddy bear."

"That's _mi Lunita_," Mari agreed affectionately, rubbing the side of the dog's face and smiling when she leaned into her hand. "Definitely a lap-dog."

"Where does she sleep?"

Mari gave her a sheepish look. "On the bed. But she always sleeps at the foot of it, not in our faces."

Kimiko rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Mari, I swear..."

"_Te huro_ that you won't even feel her on the bed! _Te lo prometo!_" she told her, grabbing her shoulders. "She's such a good little doggie!"

"But- Oh don't you do that!" Kimiko whined, "You know that I hate it when you pull the sad face."

Mari cried, hugging her friend tightly. "Come ooooon, _Kimi!_ This is Luna's house too and I don't have the heart to kick her off her own bed!" In the midst of their exchange, the dog waddled over to the foot of the bed and curled up into a little ball, her head on her paws, floppy ears twitching lightly and her tail tucked into her side. Mari forced Kimiko to look at the dog. "Look at her, Kimi. She's a tiny little thing." Mari started to ramble off, "I mean, she's a little fat for her breed, but she's only eight pounds and she doesn't even look as fat as she is. She moves when she needs to and all she likes to make sure is that she has a nice and comfy place to sleep, bu-"

"I hate you," Kimiko scowled. Mari blinked and cocked her head to the side. "She can stay."

"YAY!" Mari cheered, hugging Kimiko tightly. Luna sneezed and resolved to go to sleep just as the girls climbed into bed, getting settled. Kimiko smiled and got comfortable, starting to close her eyes.

"Psst!"

Kimiko groaned and turned onto her other side. "What?"

Mari looked at her friend with happiness written all over her face, her turqoiuse eyes practically gleaming in the little light that was in the room. She reached under the covers and squeezed her friend's hand. "_Bienvenido a la familia, Kimi._"

When Kimiko thought of waking up in the morning, she expected to feel a streaming of sunlight through her curtains, hear the blaring of an alarm clock and the sounds of her father getting ready for work. She expected to drag herself out of bed and feel the sudden sting of the shower before she finally woke up. She would have gotten dressed and then walked down to the kitchen to pull out a box of cereal and start eating before her father would start ushering her to hurry and get into the car. She expected that after that, they would have gone to Keiko and Mari's house to pick up her friends and then get dropped off at school for a day of torture.

What she did not expect to feel when she woke up in the morning was the roughness of a dog's tongue.

Shocked into awakening, she shot up and looked down the muzzle of the very dog that'd been trying to attack her yesterday, who took to barking at her in protest of the sudden movement. "What the…"

"He wanted to apologize," Raimundo told her from the doorway.

Kimiko looked up at him and then to the side to see Mari, still knocked out with her curls spilled messily all over the place, taking up about two-thirds of the bed with her badly arranged limbs. Luna was sitting at the foot of the bed, her tail shaking at the second-oldest Pedrosa sibling. She semi-scowled at her friend before looking back to her adoptive brother as Bandido easily trotted over to Luna, his goofy little tongue hanging out. "Why are you in here?"

"My house, girl," he reminded her with a smirk. "Somebody needed t' wake you guys up and I always come in to take Luna here out to pee." Her eyes narrowed at him while he sauntered over as she self-consciously brought the edge of the blanket to cover herself more. At this, Raimundo rolled his eyes. "Calm down. I'm not gonna eat you." He picked the small and fluffy dog up, earning a whine from Bandido. "Shh. _Baixo_," he commanded, swiping the other dog off the bed.

Kimiko still eyed him suspiciously. "I don't trust you near me."

Raimundo shrugged. "Don't matter t' me. You're not the first person t' say that and you won't be the last." He bent down on one leg and put Luna's collar and leash on before doing the same to Bandido. "C'mon, little guys," he grinned as he rubbed their ears.

His apathy irked her. It shouldn't have, but it did. And before she knew it, her mouth shot off: "So what you're telling me is that you're not someone to trust."

He stood. "No. I'm tellin' you that I don't care what people think about me or whether they trust me or not." He placed a hand on his chest, holding the leashes with his other. "I have the trust of my family and my friends, so that's all I need."

Her eyes narrowed. "You're so noble."

The Brazilian smirked and turned away. "I try to be."

"I wasn't being serious," she told him with an irritated scowl.

"Girl, you don't need t' state the obvious," he told her at the doorway. "I sorta got the message already." She ruffled in anger, her temper getting the better of her. "But thanks anyway," he grinned mischievously before ducking out. Kimiko gritted her teeth, clenching her fists tightly, her nails digging into the flesh of her palm as she suppressed the urge to throw something after him. She looked down at her friend, staring at her as she drooled away innocently. Kimiko smirked sadistically and turned her body, bracing herself against the edge of the bed and placing her feet on her friend's side.

"Mari~," she sang sweetly, knowing she wouldn't get an answer. "Time to..." Kimiko grunted as she started to push the Hispanic off of the bed. "Get..." She pushed harder, grinning as her friend was close to the edge, moaning out in protest. "UP!"

"KIMIIIII!" Mari cried sleepily as she smacked into the floor, wincing as she rubbed her bottom and the back of her head.

She peeked over the edge, smiling her best innocent smile. "Good morning~"

Mari glared at her blur. "_Te Juro. Te odio. _I swear that I hate you."

"Love you too; now get up! We have school to go to!"

She yawned irritably. "Yeah, yeah."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** This is a really sad and weak update considering the length of time, but I really had to put SOMETHING up. :x TT_TT I'm so sorry.


	5. Days Go By

**A/N:** So let's skip the excuses and get to the story, shall we? :3 I recommend re-reading to get back into the groove of everything~ (Also, I hate Mari and her stupid Frankenstein dialect.)

**DISCLAIMER:** Xiaolin Showdown is not and never will be mine, sadly. It is intellectual property of Christy Hui, who was kind enough to not complain about people writing about her series. Layla is a character concept borrowed from fellow fanficker Kidd Death who I love with all my heart because he is awesome. :D

* * *

><p><em>She peeked over the edge, smiling her best innocent smile. "Good morning~"<em>

_Mari glared at her blur. "Te Juro. Te odio. I swear that I hate you."_

_"Love you too; now get up! We have school to go to!"_

_She yawned irritably. "Yeah, yeah."_

**~*Days go By (and Still I Think Of You?)*~**

Kimiko and Mari made their way up the stairs, figuring out a system for both of them to share the tiny bathroom in the basement in lieu of yesterday's happenings. Mari laughed. "I don't know Kim, I think he's starting to like you."

"That demonic dog?" she asked with her nose wrinkled.

"Yeah!" Mari nudged her. "_Y para _with all the hate for my baby, chick. He's not even all that bad."

Kimiko childishly stuck her tongue out at her. "You're blinded by love."

"Put that thing away before I bite it," she growled back just as playfully while they made their way over to the kitchen table and had plates laid before them.

Mari looked up and grinned widely. "Thanks, _mãe._"

Yaritza kissed her head. "_Bom dia, Mariana,_" she greeted. "And good morning to you too, Kimiko."

"Morning," Kimko replied, looking down at her plate to see fresh eggs and bacon with toast to the side. She blinked, unused to having something warm for breakfast ever. Now this was a step up from an apple – or Coco Puffs if she was lucky. She looked to the side to see Mari's focused face as the Hispanic got to planning out her day and events. She glanced over to Andre on his boosted chair, giggling as the child grinned at her with his mouth filled with crumbs.

Layla and Micky ran into the room, looking every bit like the pair of terror twins Mari had described. Micky (she thought) grinned and knocked Layla out of the way as she tried to clamor onto the counter-top. Layla protested and yanked on her sister's leg, to which Micky responded with an attempted kick. Yaritza grabbed both of them, surprisingly (though not really once Kimiko thought about it) strong enough to tuck both girls under her arm, ignoring the rising uniform whine, and dropped them both into chairs. "_É muito cedo para isso. _It's too early for you two to start with your trouble," she scolded.

"Sorry…" they grumbled, crossing their arms together with a pout.

_I really need to learn how to tell them apart,_ Kimiko thought to herself as Kaiki took his seat, yawning widely. She picked at her food, hyper aware of everyone taking their seats at the huge table. Omi (or the kid she assumed was Omi) hopped in beside Kaiki, a very tired-looking Raimundo collapsing into his own chair. Mari looked up. "Shinki already left?"

"Yes!" Omi chimed. "He said he has much to do this morning!"

Yaritza frowned. "Did he grab something to eat?"

"_Sim,_" Raimundo yawned as he tried to catch some sleep at the table. "He said he'd buy something on his way to school." Raimundo yelped as his mother struck his head with her favorite wooden spoon.

"_Levante-se!_" she commanded, a hand on her hip and her spoon waving threateningly.

Kimiko giggled to herself a little as Raimundo groaned and sat up, pushing the utensil-turned-weapon away from him. "Okay, okay." The woman snorted and eyed him threateningly as she turned to lay more plates down in front of the children. Nathalia floated in, looking positively refreshed as she took the third-to-last seat. She looked up at her mother.

"_Pai_ went to work?"

"Mmhmm," Yaritza responded as she laid out a plate for her daughter. "He said to wish you all a good morning."

Kimiko observed the chatter going on at the table, feeling odd and quiet among so much livelihood. When her father and she ate in the mornings, it was eaten in rushed silence, sharing the papers and magazine subscriptions, occasionally sparking the rare gushing about the latest in robotic technology. She shifted a bit uncomfortably, done with her breakfast. Yaritza frowned. "I'm sorry. Did I serve you too much?"

"Ah… A little," Kimiko answered sheepishly. "I don't normally eat much in the morning."

"No problem, _querida_," Yaritza told her kindly, picking up the plate. She handed it to Kaiki, who poured her leftovers onto his own plate without missing a beat and handed it back. Mari finished her own food and grabbed the plate from her mother.

"I'll wash it," she assured her as she proceeded to do so. Kimiko blinked at the fluidity they displayed together. She'd been around less than a morning and she could already see how the house seemed to operate like a well-oiled, synchronized machine. She watched the twins plot, her eyes following as they tried to make a grab at Nathalia's plate, seeing as Nat effortlessly picked her plate up and snatched it out of their reach, and noting the small snicker everyone else shared as the twins scowled at their plan's failure. When Mari finished, she patted Rai on the back. "Hurry up; Kim and I need to get to school."

He choked and coughed. "Who said I was taking you two?"

Yaritza leveled an arched eyebrow at him, raising the spoon again. "I did. Is there a problem with that?"

He cowered, holding a hand up to fend off the dreaded spoon. "No…"

"_Excelente_," she smiled and turned her back. Raimundo grumbled, practically jumping out of his skin when she playfully pointed the spoon back at him. Everyone at the table stopped their side-conversations to laugh at this as Yaritza kissed her son's head in apology, returning to their own happenings afterwards, except Kimiko, who was feeling a bit more than a little culture-shocked. Mari grabbed her things and pulled Kimiko away from the chaos of the table.

"Are you alright?" she asked, worried.

"Y-yeah," Kimiko replied, shaking out her head.

"_¿Segura?_" she pressed, making sure. Mari held her hands. "You're really quiet, _amorsita._"

"Mari, I'm fine." She breathed out. "It's just… really different from my house." Kimiko tilted her head back to reorient herself. "And it kind of hit me that I'm going to have to get used to a lot of things."

Mari hugged her friend tightly. "Oh Kimi. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she assured her, hugging her back. "You guys are doing me a really big favor. Besides, it's not that bad. You guys are more like a really interactive sitcom."

Mari laughed at that. "Not even." She let go. "Come on. If we don't poke and harass Rai, he'll never get going." Kimiko smiled and followed her back into the morning fray.

A little later than they would have wanted to be, Mari and Kimiko parted ways with Raimundo, heading for their own classes. Reveling in finally finding herself alone for a bit, Kimiko breathed out a large sigh as she walked down to her first period.

"KIMI!"

She should've known better. Turning to look at Keiko, she wearily prepared herself. Keiko hugged her tightly. "How was it?" the honey-blonde asked.

"It was alright," Kimiko answered honestly. "I'll tell you more about it later, but right now I have to get going to class, Kei. Lunch, I swear."

"Ugh. You better, or I'll kick your butt!" Keiko promised.

Kimiko grinned and ran off.

The rest of the day went off without much of a hitch. Classes went by as a fuzzy blur for her. Lunch was spent mostly answering Keiko's questions as they came and dealing with her frustrated huffs when she discovered the generally anti-climatic nature of everything (she and Mari omitted the incident with the dog from yesterday) and assured her that a sleepover was coming along soon, but the basement (which Keiko freaked out about) was still filled with unpacked boxes. The afternoon classes were no better nor no worse than their morning counterparts and before she knew it, Kimiko and Mari were waving good-byes to Keiko as they waited by Raimundo's car. Mari stuck her spoon into her cup of ice-cream, the spring days getting hotter by the day, and sighed, handing it over to Kimiko as she tied her hair back. "_¡Jesus! _It's hot!"

"No kidding," Kimiko sighed as she shifted her weight to her other foot. "Where is your brother?"

"_No se,_" she replied, taking back her ice cream when Kimiko offered it. "But when I see him, I'm kicking his Brazilian butt."

"Can I help?" she asked hopefully.

Mari laughed and took another bite. "Nah. You get too rough, _amor_. I don't want to kill him."

"I wouldn't kill him…" she grumbled. "Just maim a little?" Mari giggled as a car pulled up in front of them and the driver whistled to them. They looked up curiously to see Shinki peeking through the passenger window, leaning over from the driver's side.

"Could I interest you two in a ride?" he asked with a small smile.

Mari cried out in relief. "Thank the lord!" She pulled Kimiko along before the girl had a chance to answer. "You want the front?" she asked.

"Ah… I'd be fine in the back."

"Sure?"

"Yeah."

Mari shrugged and got into the passenger seat, letting Kimiko get into the back seat. She hugged her oldest brother tightly, smiling happily. "Shin, you're a lifesaver~"

He chuckled and hugged her back. "Rai called and said his coach wanted to get in a random meeting for next season and asked me to give you guys a ride for him."

"Oh God!" Mari huffed, pulling back as he started to drive. "I can't even begin to imagine the walk back in this heat!" She dramatically laid her hand over her forehead. "My poor shoes! My shirt! Sun-bleached!"

"It's not even that serious, Mari," Kimiko answered with a roll of her eyes. Mari shot her a look from her place in the front.

"You speak blasphemy against fashion!"

Shinki laughed whole-heartedly. "I swear, I know someone who you sound just like."

"OH!" Mari bounced. "Is it that red-headed girl I saw you walking with the other day? She had on the cutest jeans and her blouse was to die for," she gushed.

"She looks like someone who would definitely appreciate good style."

Shinki lightly pushed her. "Yes, but don't even start," he laughed.

"OH! YOU LIKE HER!" she gasped, covering her mouth.

"Mari…" he warned.

"You really like her!" she gasped again. Mari laughed out loud. "OH! You just WAIT until Rai knows! We're gonna have fun with this one!" Shinki pinched her side.

"OW!"

"You're not telling Raimundo anything," he said seriously. "You're not telling anyone else anything."

Mari pouted. "Boo. Fine."

As the siblings talked between them, Kimiko just observed. It was… Odd. You would think that the two had spent their entire lives together, when in reality, it had only been six years. She watched as they jokingly fought over the radio, alternating between respective favorite stations and exchanging all sorts of banter and laughing together. She felt a small pang of jealousy at the close bond because, no matter how hard she tried, she would never have siblings like they did. She was a stranger in their lives. The thought was really depressing.

Mari peeked back again and poked her. "Girl. What's with your face? You're making me wanna cry," she whined.

Kimiko looked at her and then at Shinki's eyes, looking at her through the rear-view mirror in concern. She shook her head. "No. I'm fine."

"Promise?" Mari pouted, giving her a puppy look.

She nodded. "Yep!"

With a grin, Mari turned back and looked ahead. "So you gonna help us set up Kim's _cosas_?" she asked Shinki, acting cute.

"That's why I'm taking the day off from work," he confirmed with a hum.

"_Ooooh_. A guy after my own heart!" she joked, clapping in joy. "_¿Y Raimundo?_"

"He promised to help out once he got home from school, Mari."

"_¡Perfecto!_" she squealed. Mari got a mischievous look. "_Ahora_. You never finished telling me about the mysterious _pelirroja_."

Shinki pointed out the window. "Oh! Would you look at that? Home already!"

Mari scowled and gave him the dirty eye. "'Dis ain't over, Shinki!" He blew her a kiss and helped a giggling Kimiko out of the car, taking her bag.

"No," Kimiko said. "I can carry it."

"Nonsense," Shinki told her. "I got it, Kimiko."

Mari whispered, "You won't win this one. He's gentlemanly to a fault." Kimiko sighed in resignation.

"Thank you."

He gave her a positively chipper grin and led the way inside. Mari squatted down to embrace Bandido, cooing hellos and giving him many kisses of love before handing him off to Shinki and picking up Luna and repeating the process. "Ma!" Shinki called out. "We're home! Did you let Luna and Ban out into the yard today?!"

"_SIM!_" Yaritza called back.

Mari pulled Kimiko down to the basement and got on clearing some space. Kimiko asked, "... What's Shinki's story anyhow?"

"Hmm?" Mari turned to her, brushing a loose curl from her line of sight.

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I mean, I know how you ended up here, but I don't understand how he did. He was so young when he came to the family. He was practically raised with Raimundo."

Mari frowned a bit. "Ah... I wouldn't be able to tell you."

"Why not?" she pressed.

Looking down at her boxes, Mari frowned. "Sorry, Kim. I never really asked."

Kimiko narrowed her eyes. Mari wasn't looking at her. She knew her. She knew that when Mari wasn't looking at her, Mari was hiding something from her. She gave her that stare that she gave her when she knew she was lying about something. Mari shifted nervously, refusing to look her straight in the face.

"We ready to get going on this?" Shinki asked as he came in with Kaiki.

Mari took in a deep breath of relief and glomped her brother tightly. "Yes!" Kimiko growled in frustration, kicking her box full of pillows. _Damn it! I hate it when she hides shit from me!_

Kaiki gave Kimiko an odd look. "Umm... Is she alright? I mean... Kicking stuff is nice and all, but please leave innocent boxes out of it."

Blushing red, Kimiko coughed. "Yeah... I... I thought I saw a bug on it."

Kaiki laughed. "It's okay. You don't have to lie about your inner crazy." Mari and Shinki snickered at that. Kimiko scowled.

"Can we just get a move on?"

They instantly got on unpacking all of her furniture, soon forgetting all their worries. Shinki and Kaiki, with all their fun, were a joy to have during a normally tedious process. Once or twice, she and Mari had to stop them from fooling around with the power drills and use the tools properly, but had ended up laughing their butts off when Kaiki accidently dropped it on his foot and bounced around the room in pain. Kimiko wiped away a tear and gasped for air. "I'll get some ice!"

"That'd be nice," Kaiki winced. He brightened. "That rhymed!"

"You're practically a poet," Mari teased. Kaiki scowled at her. Kimiko giggled as she walked upstairs to get an ice pack for him. She looked straight up into bright green eyes.

"Ah... Hey," Raimundo greeted.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **So I am horribly ashamed of how long it took to get this out. :( I'd like to apologize to all of you. Seriously. Umm... So I'd like to offer cookies to all?


	6. I've Got a Truce for You

**A/N:** Guess who updated sooner than expected? :D This girl! Right into it! I'm being a trooper today!

**DISCLAIMER:** Xiaolin Showdown is no mio. It is intellectual property of Christy Hui, who was kind enough to not complain about people writing about her series. Layla is a character concept borrowed from fellow fanficker Kidd Death who I love very much~

* * *

><p><em>Kimiko wiped away a tear and gasped for air. "I'll get some ice!"<em>

"_That'd be nice," Kaiki winced. He brightened. "That rhymed!"_

"_You're practically a poet," Mari teased. Kaiki scowled at her. Kimiko giggled as she walked upstairs to get an ice pack for him. She looked straight up into bright green eyes._

"_Ah... Hey," Raimundo greeted._

**~*I've Got a Truce for You*~**

Kimiko stared at Raimundo in the face, not sure how to handle this situation. The wheels in her mind started turning and whirring at high speeds as she tried to figure out the best way to deal with the Pedrosa's second-oldest child, especially considering how badly they've gotten along thus far. Her face heated up as she remembered their earlier interactions, embarrassed at her behavior and the things she said to him. She wished she could disappear. _Oh god. Wait- what the hell?_ A highly intrusive hand waved in her face. "Hellooo?"

Her head snapped up. _Oh right._ "H-hi."

"Are you alright?" he asked, crossing his arms and leaning against the upper doorway that led into the kitchen as he showed concern for her all over his face. "You kind of spaced out there."

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Kimiko fortified, waving her spacing-spell off. His mouth twisted in that way Mari's did when she was about to question her. Kimiko looked at him and held her hands up, communicating that she was, indeed, positive and smiled when he backed off, shrugging in a way she knew was his and his alone. She bit her lip as she was hit by inspiration; she needed to make some amends, like now. "Umm… Raimundo? Could you walk with me?"

He gave her a strange look, curious of her intentions. "Sure…"

Kimiko led him over to the kitchen, making sure no one was around before she laid a hand on the freezer's handle. "I'm sorry," she apologized, bowing a bit.

"For?"

He sounded genuinely surprised. Kimiko smiled wryly and continued. "Punching you in the gut." She paused. "And yelling at you yesterday. It was uncalled for," she admitted, looking down in shame. "And this morning. I was being really petty." Kimiko frowned to herself. She was rarely ever that petty.

Raimundo laughed, surprising her in turn. "What? I'm way over that."

"Really?"

He laid a hand on her shoulder. "Girl, I live in a house with seven other siblings. You learn how to let things go." Raimundo rubbed his lower abdomen, wincing at the memory. "But that punch really did hurt, so I'm glad you apologized about that one." They laughed together as she pulled out the icepack, feeling a great tension lift.

She smirked evilly and pressed it against his shirt. "Does that feel better?"

"_Deus,_ no!" he exclaimed, backing away quickly. "That thing is cold as hell!" Kimiko giggled and turned to take the ice pack downstairs. "Hey," he asked, catching up. "Who got hurt?"

"Kaiki was playing with one of the power drills."

"Pfft," he snorted as he followed her down. "He's always getting hurt."

They stopped at the doorway as they found Mari and Shinki caught up in a dance, a loud and decently upbeat song blaring on the radio ("It's a bachata," Raimundo informed her. Kimiko thanked him, sighing in relief. She'd always had a hard time telling the difference between Mari's Hispanic nonsenses) while Kaiki watched in amusement. Kimiko laughed to herself as she watched Shinki spin her, keeping in rhythm with the melody and beat, and Mari move her hips effortlessly, singing along with the song, losing herself in it. Raimundo took the ice from her hands and joined his younger brother, handing it off, sitting beside him and chuckling with him. Kimiko smiled as her best friend danced with her brother, crossing her arms and enjoying the scene. Call her crazy, but it was day two and she already loved everything that the Pedrosas stood for. They meshed well, but she could tell that they were real, never ideal. They were a patchwork family, made of different cultures and personalities, all meshed into one place. She noted Mari's grin and Shinki's smile and how Kaiki and Raimundo seemed to take pleasure in the two simply enjoying themselves. Kimiko sighed wistfully. She really wished she could belong to their odd ecosystem, existing in this odd chemistry, but she only had two years before she'd be able to access her funds and she knew she'd like to travel and experience the world. Two years was simply not enough for the level of connection they had.

The song finished and the spell broken, the four of them burst into laughter. Mari hugged Raimundo. "_Hola~_"

He grinned and hugged her back. "'Sup, guys? You two seemed to be enjoying yourselves." Shinki grinned and messed up his hair.

"It was fun," he told him.

"There's another _canción_ coming on," Mari grinned. "_¿Bailamos?_"

"Maybe later. We have work to do," Rai reminded her, holding out her hands. Mari pouted and pulled away.

"Pooh. You're right."

Shinki looked over at Kimiko. "Why are you standing all the way over there? We're unpacking and fixing up your stuff." She blinked, not realizing she'd been just standing there, simply observing everything.

"Yeah, girl," Raimundo smirked, making her heart flutter a little at the cuteness of it being directed right at her. "Get back over here before we drag you over."

Kimiko smiled and hopped down the last stair. She may not be as ingrained into the patchwork as they were, but she was at least starting to meld with the mix. _Who knows? Two years might just be enough._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **It's a little short, but it's a second update in one day and I really felt like this was a nice place to end things. =3= Also, I imagined they were dancing to this song on youtube: watch?v=E46_UgwkQnw


	7. To Like or Not to Like

**A/N:** Have you ever looked through your old documents and seen your old plot bunnies? Oh God. Shoot me. (OMG. I LOVE YOU, REVIEWERS. I LOVE YOU. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH. *Melts into a happy puddle*) So here's a fresh and brand new chapter in which Kimiko tries to explain why bullying is bad to a nine-year-old that is certified in kick-ass.

On a side note... I would've updated faster if it weren't for the fact that this is a pretty important transitionary chapter that's gonna be ending the exposition phase of the story and I wanted to get it just perfectly?

**Disclaimer: **Xiaolin Showdown is intellectual property of Christy Hui, who was amazing enough to even buy out the copyright from Warner Brothers to bring us Xiaolin Chronicles. :D Kidd Death is Layla to my Micky. :3

* * *

><p><em>"Pooh. You're right."<em>

_Shinki looked over at Kimiko. "Why are you standing all the way over there? We're unpacking and fixing up your stuff." She blinked, not realizing she'd been just standing there, simply observing everything._

_"Yeah, girl," Raimundo smirked, making her heart flutter a little at the cuteness of it being directed right at her. "Get back over here before we drag you over."_

_Kimiko smiled and hopped down the last stair. She may not be as ingrained into the patchwork as they were, but she was at least starting to meld with the mix. Who knows? Two years might just be enough._

**~*To Like or Not To Like*~**

After setting her furniture up and covering everything with tarp, the boys (including Omi, who'd joined their mirth soon enough) helped them repaint the basement into brighter, more fun colors – she couldn't even begin to tell you the mess that became. She and Mari gave finality to the bathroom deal and Kimiko was given chores at her own insistence; she hated feeling useless while everyone else did work. After about a week's transitory period, she fell right into place with everyone else. In less than a blink of an eye, two days easily became two months. School was let out for the summer, Raimundo graduated, and Kimiko adjusted to life with this family relatively quickly, making connections and bettering her relationships with everyone - it was really hard not to feel welcome with these people. They cared for her like another of their own and her father's financial support helped get the villa some very necessary repairs going.

Today was one such day that found Shinki and father hanging on suspension cables with all the tools out, getting to fixing the leak in Nathalia's room. Kimiko, Keiko, Mari, the twins, and Andre all swam in the pool, enjoying the water and the reprieve from the heat. Keiko sighed as she laid her head on her shoulder, watching as the beads of sweat formed a layer of luster over the oldest son's skin and his muscles pulled and contracted as he hammered and ripped at shingles. "Are you sure it wouldn't work out, Mari? I just turned seventeen..."

"Pfft. Giiiiirl," Mari snorted, wringing water out of her hair. "I told you once and I'll telly you twice: way out of your league."

Kimiko smirked at her friend's rampant crush and swam around, comfortable despite the high temperatures. "Besides, I think he likes red-heads." Keiko gasped, her hands slapping at her cheeks.

"I can be a red-head! I can totally pull that off!" She piled her hair up. "You don't think I'd look good in red?"

Layla and Micky died in their peals of laughter, pointing at Keiko and ridiculing her. "You? You're dumber than a blonde!" Micky (who Kimiko had discovered was recognizable by the tiny birthmark below her left eye and had a tendency to be verbally meaner) jeered. "That's rich if you think Shin likes flat girls like you!" Layla howled in amusement.

"Yeah! He'd never go for a hag!" Keiko frowned and self-consciously adjusted the top of her swimsuit, shielding herself from their line of sight as her arms wrapped around herself.

"_¡Cállanse!_" Mari snapped at the twins, suddenly forced out of her good mood once she saw Keiko's face, "Shut up, both of you!" and started to go over before Kimiko stopped her and pointed at Keiko. Mari recognized this and drew back to hug their friend tightly as Kimiko swam over and pushed both their heads underwater, holding them for a few seconds before letting go.

"What is your problem?" Micky demanded, sputtering as she resurfaced. Layla coughed heavily over the pool edge, half-drowned and very dazed.

Kimiko's nose scrunched up, her baby-blues darkening. "No. The question is what is _your _problem."

Micky held her fists up angrily, gritting her teeth and standing up against Kimiko. "You just drowned my sister! She can't swim and you could've killed her, you stupid witch!" she yelled, swinging her fist. Mari's eyebrows shot up, furrowing in worry that this was about to get really out of hand, but she concentrated on muttering comfort to Keiko as Kimiko grabbed Micky's wrists and held them above her head, earning a frustrated yell.

"L-let," Layla coughed from her place, looking sick. "Let her go before I kick your butt!"

"Kim..." Keiko started, trying to catch her attention. "It's not that... Serious..." Mari watched, holding onto Keiko and biting her lip. She looked to the side as Raimundo snuck his way over, sliding in beside them. ("What's going on?" he mouthed. "Is Keiko okay?" Mari nodded. "Kim's trying to teach the twins a lesson." "Oooh boy.") Andre sucked on his thumb, floating around in his inner tube. Kimiko ignored her, holding onto Micky's wrists as she struggled before wearing herself out, weakly trying to kick at her.

"Are you done?" Kimiko demanded. Micky gave her a reluctant, but still vaguely defiant look, nodding slowly. "I'm sorry," she snapped at them, rubbing the bridge of her nose, trying to reign in her temper. _Come on, Kim. Remember what Mari said when she told you about these two. It won't do anyone any good if you stay angry. Come on. You can do it. Just... Be... Cool._ She took in a deep and cleansing breath before continuing, reiterating her apology. "I'm sorry to both you and Layla, but it's not so great when people just push you around, is it?"

"We didn't even touch anyone!"

"Micky. That's a problem if you think that's the only way you can push someone around," Kimiko chided sternly, her hands on her hips as she frowned on the girl before her. "Bullies don't _need_ to punch and kick and beat people to be bad. How would you feel if I told you that you were ugly and stupid?"

Micky scowled and exclaimed, "I'd punch your face in!" (Raimundo's hand flew up to his mouth to hide a laugh - it was a very typical response of Micky's. Mari lightly punched his arm. "Shuddup," she hissed.)

Kimiko buried her face in her hands. _You're dealing with a nine-year-old tomboy that knows martial arts, Tohomiko. Remember that._ "Okay," she sighed, trying her absolute best to keep her patience in line. "What if it was a person who was a lot stronger than you and you knew you couldn't win?"

"I'd tell Lala to punch his face in!" Micky chimed, starting to smirk. Layla grinned widely from her place and beat her fists together to support her sister. Kimiko had to stop herself from beating her head into the concrete sides of the pool.

"Micky, you can't honestly expect to solve everything with your fists," she told her, putting a hand on her shoulders. "You and Layla said some things that were really out of line and you hurt Keiko's feelings."

Micky crossed her arms and muttered, "Why should I care about her stupid feelings?"

"Because I know you wouldn't like it if she treated you like you treated her," Kimiko emphasized. "Keiko has been nothing but nice to you and she deserves better. I know your parents taught you two better and I know Shinki wouldn't approve of you guys hurting anyone's feelings for his sake." Micky started to get uncomfortable. Kimiko inwardly grinned, keeping her outward disapproving mask as intact as she possibly could. _YES! I'm getting through to her!_ The younger girl turned and looked at her sister, mirroring discomfort. After a few moments of what one could only call twin-telepathy, Micky turned and looked up.

"I guess you're right..." she admitted softly. She swam over to her twin and both of them walked up the concrete steps to near where Keiko, Mari, and Raimundo were camped out. She and Layla looked at each other one final time, holding each other's hand, before looking down. "We're sorry," Micky told her. "We said things that weren't nice and got carried away. We didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"What she said," Layla chirped.

Keiko looked at Mari, who released her from the hug, and hoisted herself onto the surface. She hugged the twins, smiling weakly. "It's okay. I forgive you." They grinned and broke away to run back to the shallow end. "Cannon dive!" Micky shouted in glee, jumping in without really doing much of a dive. Layla simply took the stairs, not trusting the water enough to jump into it. Kimiko smiled to herself and swam back to the beat of Raimundo's rousing applause and whistles. She gave him a questioning look.

"When did you get here?"

Raimundo grinned. "Right about when you forced the terror twins' mouthpiece into submission." Mari giggled at Kimiko's blush.

"It wasn't anything like that."

"Whaaaat?" he laughed. "It was totally like that, girl! Kei, back me up on this one." Raimundo nudged Keiko, who only nodded with an amused smile. "You were all, 'You little brats!' VERBAL POW! 'Go apologize before I kick your little behinds!'" Mari giggled again as Kimiko rolled her eyes and looked to her long-time friend.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Keiko assured her before hugging her tightly. "Thanks, Kimi. For sticking up for me."

Kimiko hugged her back just as tightly. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't?"

Mari sniffed. "Oh! What a _bello_ moment!" Raimundo stopped his exaggeration of Kimiko and Micky's scene and joined his sister, heaving out an exaggerated sigh and wrapping an arm around his sister's shoulders.

"Hug me, _irmã_!"

"AH!" Mari cried as she turned to hug Raimundo tightly. "_Te quero_, Rai!"

"I love you too!" he fake-sobbed as he hugged her.

Keiko and Kimiko looked at them expectantly, not amused by their shenanigans. "You're both stupid," Kimiko deapanned, but smiled. Mari grinned and she and Raimundo both pulled her and Keiko into a big group hug. "ACK! LET GO!" she laughed, pushing at them. Keiko whined, "Ohh! You guys are squishing me!"

"Never~" Mari gushed, nibbling on Keiko's neck lovingly. "We're keeping you guys forever and ever and we'll always be together."

"Maybe a little less than forever," Raimundo amended. "Forever's a really long time." As the three of them shared a laugh and broke apart, Kimiko couldn't help but to feel really happy.

Time passed and all of them discovered their fingers to be akin to prunes. As they got out, Keiko looked to the golding skyline and told them, "Sorry guys, but I have to head home before my parents start yelling at me."

Mari pouted, crossing her arms. "They always yell, _chica_. Let us keep you _para siempre_~" Keiko grinned and dried herself off before she pulled on her shorts and her t-shirt. "You already have too many kids running around. I think I'll pass."

Kimiko hugged her in goodbye. "Remember to bring your stuff for Friday!"

"Will do!" She waved a single-handed goodbye to all of them after giving Raimundo a parting hug as well. "See you then!"

Mari checked the time. "Kim?"

"Hmm?"

"Mind letting me have _el ba'emen __para un tiempo_?" she asked. "I have a project I kind of want to _terminar_."

Kimiko looked at her curiously. "How long is some time?"

Mari shrugged. "Maybe two or-"

"How about you don't worry about that and just be done by the time we come back?" Raimundo interrupted.

"Hah?" Mari blinked. Kimiko looked at him, just as confused.

He mused up Kimiko's wet hair. "Let's go hang out. Just you and me while this one here finishes up whatever she's doing. We've been in the pool all day and I haven't been out of the house in like a week or something." The Brazilian stretched. "I'm starting to feel restless, man."

"Would your parents let us?" Kimiko asked, warding off his hand and starting to dry off properly.

Raimundo grinned. "Let's find out." He walked over to the house and shouted up at his father, who was currently replacing their rain gutter. "_PAI!"_

"_O QUE?_" Gabriel shouted back, drilling some screws into place. Mari and Kimiko exchanged a look.

"CAN KIMIKO AND ME HANG OUT FOR A LITTLE BIT?!"

"DO YOU NEED MONEY?"

"NAH! I GOT IT!"

"ARE YOU GOING TO BE BACK BEFORE DINNER?"

"I DON'T KNOW, BUT I HAVE ENOUGH FOR FOOD!"

"BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT!"

"COOL! THANKS,_ PAI!_" He walked back over and bowed. "Easy peasy."

Mari burst out laughing. "Only you, Rai." Kimiko shook her head and reminded him, "I haven't even said yes yet."

"But you will be saying yes," he countered with only his best and sweetest smile, playing the angel. "I mean... You can't resist this face."

She sighed and pushed him away, resisting the strong and growing urge to grin at his antics. "Whatever. I guess I'll go." She eyed him and the smug grin he was giving. "But you're buying, Raimundo."

"Yep."

"And you're driving."

"Uh huh."

"And you're opening my doors."

"Ah... We'll see about that." Kimiko started to open her mouth to respond, but stopped when she felt a hand clamp over her mouth.

"_¡Niña!" _Mari interjected, sighing and growing frustrated with the banter. "Just say yes and go already! _¡Dios mio!_ You ask way too many frikkin questions!" Kimiko scowled at Mari, prying her friend's hand off of her mouth, before she looked at him. "I guess my mind was made for me."

"I'll meet you at my car, alright?"

She turned and looked over her shoulder as she walked with Mari. "Mmhmm. I'll see you in a few minutes." As they walked into the house, Raimundo found himself beaming in the wake of his success.

"You like her," Shinki lightly accused, having gotten down from the cables to get himself a drink and a break.

"So? I don't think it's a bad thing to like a girl."

Putting an arm around his shoulders, Shinki smirked. "I think she'd be good for you, bro. She'll kick your butt when you start to get smart with her."

"Like Red does to you?" Raimundo responded smugly.

Flicking his brother's head at the comment, Shinki rolled his eyes. "No. Not like Red. I'm a perfect gentleman to her and any girl, thank-you-very-much. And how do you even know about that? Did Mari say something?"

"Come on, Shin," he teased, rubbing his head. "Mari didn't have to say a word; it's so obvious. You've never had the same girl in the house more than twice and she's around every other week."

"Go and get ready for your date and stay out of my business, lover-boy." Raimundo only grinned and ran into the house. Shinki shook his head and drank his water, breathing out deeply, before he walked back to the side of the house and hooked himself into the cables. Switching on the mechanism as it lifted him up, he picked up his tools and got back to work. "So when are we going to tell Rai?" he asked Gabriel, looking over to his father.

"When he comes of age," Gabriel answered. "He's still not at the right age to come into it."

"And the others?"

Gabriel chuckled. "Shinki, you know the answer to that: when they're at the right age."

He sighed. "I don't like hiding things. And I don't like being the only one to know."

"You only found out a little less than three years ago; Raimundo is near that age," Gabriel reminded him, looking over to his oldest son. "And you're not alone. Your sister and Ayame know. You can't expect us to reveal something that affected you all so dramatically when you're still not mentally prepared."

"Damn it," Shinki huffed, uncharacteristically frustrated. "They're smarter than that. Some of them might already know."

"Or they might think that they know."

"We sound like a cliche," he noted wryly. "Ominously talking about potentially life changing events. It's like a bad movie." He cemented some shingles back into place, replacing the roofing. "All we need is the eminent disaster that brings everyone in sooner than planned."

Gabriel knitted his brows and knocked on the still-exposed wooden parts of the roofing to ward off the ills of Shinki's statement. "Don't bring that kind of luck on us, Shinki Pedrosa-Watanabe."

"Sorry," he grumbled, retying his hair out of the way.

~*The "Date"*~

Taking a final look at herself, Kimiko looked at Mari as Luna watched from the bed and Bandido chilled, napping. "Do I look alright?"

"You look fine, _chica,_" she emphasized. "Why does it matter that much? It's just Raimundo." Kimiko's face grew warm and Mari gasped. "YOU DO NOT."

"I don't!" she snapped back instantly.

"YES YOU DO!" Mari cried, startling Bandido on the bed and causing him to bark. "_CALLATE_, LIKE RIGHT NOW, BANDIDO!" She yelled at the dog as Luna psuedo-attacked him and bit at his ear to shut him up. "Oh _mi dios en el cielo!_ You like my brother! EW!" Mari started to hop around, acting as if she'd touched something really gross.

Kimiko yelled back stubbornly, "I don't! I said I don't, so I don't!"

"You do!" Mari countered. "I know you better than that! Kimiko Tohomiko does not blush over any ol' _muchacho_!"

_Damn my stupid skin,_ Kimiko inwardly sulked before snapping, "I do not like your brother, Mari!"

Mari wailed, pacing back and forth frantically as she ranted. "_Deus_! You can't be doing this to me, Kim! He's _meu irmão_! I can't just be the super-supportive _amiga como __siempre_ and gush with you over how _lindo_ he is! That's so nasty and so wrong _y_ _no peudo creer_ you would do this to me! How could you?!"

Kimiko groaned, rubbing her temples and tuning her out. _Leave it to Mari to be over-dramatic over everything. _"Mari."

"You're the worst! The absolute worst!" Mari continued to wail.

"MARI!" Kimiko yelled, grabbing onto her shoulders. "CALM DOWN!" Mari shut up, but continued to pout heavily. "I. Do. Not. Like. Your. Brother." Kimiko emphasized. "Are we clear?"

"Whatever, Denial-Girl," Mari muttered. Kimiko glowered at her and she cowered a little. "Okay, okay. You don't like my brother. I get it, I got it, Kim."

"You supported me hanging out with him tonight," Kimiko reminded her. "For you to freak out now is ridiculous!"

"Hanging out and _hanging out_ are totally different," she insisted.

_Oh boy,_ Kimiko inwardly sighed. "Mari. Just shut up. I'm not 'hanging out' or whatever with Raimundo. I promise."

Mari sighed melodramatically. "Okay. I'll stop. You should go before you keep Rai waiting for too long." Kimiko hugged the pouty Mari tightly.

"I love you. Even if you're a huge drama queen," she assured her before heading up the stairs and rushing outside, past the kitchen to go through the French doors to get to the detached garage. Kimiko couldn't help but to laugh to herself as Kaiki sent a playful and teasing wolf-whistle her way as she left. Sparing a single look behind her to grin at him, she looked ahead and saw Raimundo goofing off with Omi.

"You will not catch me today, Raimundo!" Omi declared. "I will be victorious!"

"Gimme my keys back, Chrome-Dome!" Raimundo yelled, making a dive for him, but ending up falling on his face. He growled and glared at the grinning Asian. Kimiko couldn't help but to be amused.

"You are licked behind the fingers, Raimundo!"

"It's 'you're still wet behind the ears', dummy!" he corrected before snatching his keys back. "And I am not!"

"What you said," Omi agreed before looking up. "Oh. Good evening, Kimiko." Raimundo questioningly followed his line of sight.

She smiled at finally being noticed. "Evening, boys. Ready to go, Raimundo?"

"Ah..." He pushed Omi over as the teen started yelling his Chinese curses at him. "Yeah. Now I am." Raimundo grinned and noogied Omi before opening the passenger door as Kimiko rolled her eyes.

"Thanks," she told him before he hopped over the hood, avoiding Omi's tiny fists of fury. Omi frowned deeply.

"Am I meant to be here alone?"

Raimundo sighed as he leaned against the car door. "Go and see what Ki's doing. You guys can play video games or train in the backyard. Don't you have a new move that's _just perfect_ for a big guy like him?"

Omi brightened again. "You are most correct!" he proclaimed and ran off to do that.

Chuckling, Raimundo got into the driver's side, ignoring Kimiko's curious look. "Ready?"

"I've been ready," Kimiko reminded him. With a grin, he started the car and started to drive out, the automatic gate opening wide for him before pulling itself shut again. "So..." she started as they drove. "What was that all about?"

"What was what all about?"

"You and Omi."

He shrugged. "He's been isolated all his life. He's bound to be immature in some ways, but he's a cool kid. We play around sometimes."

Kimiko eyed him. _Despite that big mouth of his..._ "You're actually pretty nice," she stated.

"Just figuring this out?" He sounded amused.

She waved a hand off to the side. "Well, considering your reputation, I thought you'd be a typical jock. Rude and jerkish to a fault. All you really have is a blunt mouth, but it's not even that bad either. I guess you were just reacting to me not being all that agreeable before."

"Didn't your papa teach you to not judge books by covers?" he asked as he pulled up to an arcade.

"An arcade?" she asked incredulously, immediately distracted from his question as she leaned forward to get a better look. "Are you serious?"

Raimundo rose a brow as he killed the engine. "You got something against video games?"

Kimiko laughed at that. "No! I just don't want to see your face when I crush you!" Kimiko crossed her arms and grinned smugly. "I'm the best there is, bub."

"PFFT! You're so on, girl!" Raimundo laughed as he climbed out. "But don't cry when I beat your butt!" Kimiko followed in earnest as he locked the doors and led her into the arcade. "_I'm _the best."

"We'll see about that," she challenged, gravitating towards one of the traditional fighting games. "How about we turn this into a contest to see who really is the best?"

He grinned. "Is there a prize to go to the winner?"

She thought about it, tapping her finger against her chin. "Umm... Ah! The winner gets a free card."

"Free card?"

"Yep." Kimiko went into an explanation. "It means that the winner gets to ask the loser any question and they have to answer or you can use your free card to pass on any question you really don't want to answer or to pass on any favor that you don't feel like doing." She grinned a bit. "Or ask for a favor that the other person has to accept."

"Hmm..." Raimundo said, rubbing his jawline thoughtfully. "Sounds interesting... I'm in!" Kimiko grinned evilly.

"Great~"

Several virtual beatings later found a very depressed Raimundo and a highly elated Kimiko dancing around. "I told you I was the best!" she gloated gleefully, giggling. "Free card for me!"

"No fair!" he cried. "You're the daughter of a video game developer!"

Kimiko stuck her tongue out at him. "You should have thought of that before you challenged me, Raimundo." She beamed and he couldn't help but to be slightly dazzled by her bright grin. "Now you owe me a free card."

Raimundo sighed. "How are we even gonna keep track of these?"

Kimiko pulled out her smartphone and opened up an app. "I already thought of that and made something to help. Mari, Kei, and me use it to keep track of our free cards between the three of us." She held it up to show him. "See?"

"You programmed that yourself? Without any templates?" She nodded, still grinning. He grinned with her. "Nice design. I've played with making a few apps myself. Mine are more game-like though." Kimiko gasped in excitement, clapping in joy.

"Really?! I don't know anyone else outside of the internet that makes apps for fun!" _OH MY GOD! _she squealed on the inside, excited to find another programmer so close by. "Can I see some of yours?" she tested cutely, leaning forward a little as she hugged her phone to herself. _Please let him be good and not just think he's really good~_

"Is that you using your pass?" he asked hopefully.

"In your dreams," she laughed. "I wouldn't waste it like that. You don't have to if you don't want to." Raimundo dug his phone out of his pocket as Kimiko cheerily took a seat beside him.

"I'll warn you, they're more like joke apps," he told her.

"That's fine," Kimiko hummed as he handed her his phone, opening up his personal app folder so she could explore. She gasped. "You're the one that made the Inapprobutton?"

"Guilty as charged," he smirked, brushing off his shoulders proudly.

"That app helped me get through Sophomore World History with Mrs. Crud!" she laughed. "Mari and I had a ball with it! She doesn't know you make these?"

"Nope," Raimundo replied, shaking his head. "No one in my family does. Only Jermaine and my pen-pal, Clay, do." Kimiko felt something warm flutter through her at his admission. _He trusted me with something he's never really told anyone about before?_

"Well..." she drawled slightly, tilting her head to the side as she streamed her app onto his phone and labeled it appropriately. "Your secret is safe with me."

"Good," he grinned. "I'd hate it if Nat found out who keeps wirelessly locking up her phone." Kimiko laughed with him as she remembered watching the girl shriek and freak out over her phone and demanding that Shinki fix it while he tried to explain that he was a mechanic, not a programmer, and he wouldn't know how to fix that issue. She remembered having to intervene and unlock her phone with a few more ticks than she'd expected to encounter before Nathalia finally calmed down.

"She's never suspected you?"

Raimundo brushed his nails off on his t-shirt. "Everyone always assumes I'm too much of a jock to know how to play with technology like that." He smirked a little more. "I've never been the one to break people's hearts when they think they've got me figured out."

"You're terrible!" she laughed.

"Watch yourself," he teased. "I might start targeting your phone." Kimiko scrunched up her nose.

"Try me!" she challenged.

Raimundo tweaked her nose. "Maybe I will!" She started to respond before both their stomachs interrupted her. They blushed together and Raimundo scratched the back of his head. "I think we should go out and get something to eat." He looked at her. "Or maybe you'd want to go back home...?"

Seeing the reluctance on his face as he added on the last part made her smile. "No. I think I'd rather eat out for a change. I miss take-out with my Papa." He brightened and took her hands.

"Great! Maybe you can teach me about those 'functional' apps or whatever."

She grinned and allowed him to pull her up. "Sure. If you teach me how to lock up phones as well as you do."

"Maybe. Can't give away all the trade secrets, Kim." He frowned once he realized what he said. "Umm... Sorry. I didn't mean to get comfortable like that."

Kimiko shook her head, holding onto his wrists. "No. It's okay. Friends get to call me Kim, or Kimi. Whatever fits your fancy." He poked her nose, earning a wrinkle from her.

"Then you get to call me Rai. Since we're friends and all now," he declared, leading her to the nearest Chinese place. She smiled softly.

"I'd like that."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I combined the earlier events of the chapter and the date together because I wasn't going to write a lot on it anyway and I like longer chapters?

Onto my rant, continued from above. You can skip if you'd like. :X

Um... It's words and phrases like "Te quiero" in Spanish and "Te quero" in Portuguese. I'm Hispanic, so I can really only talk for Spanish, although I'm pretty sure it's a shared frustration?

Either way, English can't properly translate what that phrase means. The closest thing to "te quiero" is "I love you", but it's just not the same as "Te amo", which translates to the same thing. "Te amo" is typically reserved for passionate love between lovers. It's for people who are "in love" with each other. "Te quiero" is more versatile and we use it to speak to people who we feel very strongly for, but in a more platonic way, like family and close friends. IDK. I just really enjoy how seriously Spanish takes the concept and the usage of the words for "love" so seriously and there's so many different ways to express different kinds of love and affection to people in your life without getting tripped up over words and forcing the other person to just magically always know what you mean.

I kind of came across the issue when Mari and Rai were having their fun or whatever and I was thinking of how to help you guys _get_ what she's saying by using Rai's response? But then I thought about it and it really bothered me that the only way I could translate without having to go into this whole extra crap to explain what is so different about it is to use "I love you". :/ IDK, English. You just need to get your life together and stop being so vague with people and stop this whole "lost in translation" thing. :(

Also, basemen is not a real Spanish word for basement. Do not be fooled into using Mari's Spanglish.


	8. Punches and Strangers

**A/N:** Putting this up took a bit longer than I wanted it to. :/ I decided to just go ahead and edit it myself, considering that after a couple of days, I'm pretty much separated enough to be able to see my mistakes.

So I decided to merge the filler and main stories. =3=

**Disclaimer:** Blah, blah. XS isn't mine. Blah, blah. Warner Brothers and Christy Hui. Blah, BLAH- KIDD DEATH IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PEOPLE EVER and he contributed a personal touch for Layla this time around, so we have a more collaborative chapter this time around? :3

**Summary: **In today's shot, we get to touch upon the consequences of not knowing your strength and how, sometimes, all you need is a stranger to understand.

* * *

><p><strong>~*Punches and Strangers*~<strong>

Clamoring back into the house to the golden backdrop of the slowly setting sun, decently dry from their pool excursions (but not without a few slips on the smooth tiles) Micky pulled Layla along, running past the kitchen and up the stairs. "MICHELLE! LAYLA!" Yaritza yelled out. "_Eu juro_ if you're wet-"

"We're dry!" Micky promised before muttering aside, "-ish."

Grinning at each other, the girls reached the top, panting a bit. Closing her eyes tightly, Layla shook her hair out, sending droplets flying everywhere. "What's her deal?" she asked her sister, wringing the rest of the water out. "She's always on our butts." Micky shrugged as she opened the door into their room.

"I don't know." She grinned again. "I think she just likes to yell."

"For real!" Layla laughed, peeling off her surf-shirt. "Sometimes I think that's all she can do!" Micky laughed with her at the statement, drying herself off a little more completely. The two of them changed out of their bathing suits, hanging them to dry in the outside window.

"Hey, Lala?"

"Yeah? Wassup?"

"We should spar today," Micky declared, pulling on a loose pair of shorts. Layla looked over at her, seeming as if she were contemplating it. Micky only continued to grin at her, cracking her knuckles.

Finally, she pulled out her wraps and smirked back. "I don't mind some practice."

"Cool!" Micky grinned, pulled a t-shirt over her head, and allowed Layla to quickly change into some practice clothes before running down back outside. Her sister did the same, hopping over their earlier water puddles and trying to catch up happily. Micky ran ahead with a considerable lead, rushing for the training ring.

Layla called after her with a slight laugh, "I hope you're ready!"

"I was born ready!" she grinned, skipping into the air and round-offing to face her sister, fists up and confidence on the rise, waiting for Layla to catch up and get in proper position.

"We'll see about that!"

Quickly catching up, Layla smirked again and got into stance. They stood still for a few moments, each studying the other and figuring the best approach considering their different fighting styles. Micky's lips set in a thin line. Layla was a power-fighter. She was strong and fast enough - granted, Micky was definitely faster, but she couldn't hope to match her sister's raw strength. One punch could be all Layla would need to bring her down. Her fingers furled and unfurled cyclically with her thoughts, getting her mind into the right mood. Layla continued to stare her down as she finished wrapping her hands and feet. Micky was a wild fighter. She had a stronger ju-jitsu influence, but Layla knew better; Micky could be better described with a mixed-martial arts style. Not the kind that people fought on TV, but mixed in the truest sense of the world. Micky learned and adapted absolutely any and everything thrown her way and she was Layla's least favorite sort of fighter: evasive. They took a breath together and grinned. They knew exactly what the other was thinking.

However, being the less patient of the two, Micky was the first to move. She brashly rushed at Layla, who effectively stood her ground after loosening up, preparing to dodge whatever her sister would throw at her. Sliding to a near stop, Micky made a grab at her twin's abdomen. Layla dodged to the left, grinning at her sister's impatience before sending a swift knee in her direction. Micky pulled back and back-flipped away, aiming a kick to her chin as her body twisted. Layla reflexively threw her hands up to block the kick, not having enough to time to evade the attack entirely. Micky changed tactics in the same split-second, hooked her foot onto Layla's crossed arms, and forced all her weight into throwing it to the side to make Layla stumble.

"Crap!" Layla swore as she was knocked onto the ground, wincing when her hip struck the training mat. Taking advantage of the moment, Micky grappled her sister, making sure to entangle them in the best way she knew how. She grinned.

"You really suck today, Lala!" The other sister gritted her teeth and struggled against the grip, attempting to slip out of the hold and counter-attack. Micky's legs wrapped tighter around her waist in response. She changed tactics quickly, now trying to wrest her sister off with brute force.

"Gedoff!" she snapped, trying to pull her arm out of the hold. Micky's teeth gritted as she held on.

"No!"

Shinki called out from his place on the roof, "You're doing the hold wrong, Micky! Let go before you hurt her spine or something!" She blanched at that statement, jerking back.

"See?! Now let me go!" Layla shouted before trying to bite at Micky's arms. Micky pulled back fully now, releasing her and stumbling a bit as she scrambled to reorient herself and stand up. Layla stood up, wobbling with her, and backed away, rubbing at her neck before she leveled a scowl and got ready again.

From his place on the roof, Shinki leaned back in his place as he observed the twins, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Micky circled Layla, breathing in and out to try to curb her hyper-enthusiasm. Layla mirrored her, growing more frustrated by the second after her impromptu subduing. "I'm gonna stop going easy on you!" she proclaimed.

"Do it!" her twin challenged hotly, pulling her fists up.

"Then get at me!" Layla taunted, "Get some!" Micky gave her sister a dirty look and pulled out of stance to expose herself, beating at her chest. Layla gasped. She wasn't about to-

"HERE! FREE SHOT!" she screamed out. "'CAUSE YOU SUCK!"

_She did not!_ Micky's insult hitting home and pushing her temper onto a tipping point, she growled and impulsively rushed at her with a levied punch before she suddenly remembered who she was fighting, stopping her fist halfway, and going for a grab instead as to not hurt her sister. Micky effortlessly evaded. She side-wheeled away, grinning as she provoked her sister's temper. Layla grit her teeth as she rebounded from her missed attack, pulling back to make sure to not leave her back exposed. Micky bounced around, starting to get over-confident.

Shinki muttered as he swung over them, gently moved by the light wind, "She's going to get you right in the stomach if you do that, Mick. You're starting to let your confidence make you sloppy."

"Shouldn't you be doing something?" Gabriel shot at him, ripping at the old rain gutter.

"In a second, _Pai_," Shinki dismissed, his gaze never leaving the ring. "I don't get to see the twins practice together much. The shingles and their glue can wait." Practiced eyes followed as Layla rushed at Micky again, jabbing at her with lefts and rights alike. Micky evaded some more, moving rhythmically to keep up with the pace of the jabs, grinning as she turned it into a sorts of dance.

"Nice, solid punches, Layla," Shinki mused. Gabriel found something more interesting in the spar and decided that a break wouldn't be so bad, joining his son in his observations.

"Her stance is great," he agreed. "She's really taken to her training."

"Layla is doing exceptionally well in this situation. Micky is a little impatient, but she knows she can't get in too close to go for a grab when it comes to Layla. She's agile and knows that one punch from her sister and she's d- Oh that's gotta hurt," he winced as his prediction came true and one of Layla's fists slammed into Micky's solar plexus, effectively stealing her wind. Layla immediately transitioned into moving in for a grab, tired, frustrated, and annoyed by her sister's floaty movements. "Layla!" Shinki called out, breaking her concentration before she could go through with her movements. "Calm down and check to see if she's okay! You hit her in a really sensitive spot!"

Micky cradled her abdomen, wincing in pain as she held back her tears. Layla stopped, tripping a little as inertia caught up, blowing out her frustrations in a single heaving sigh before dropping her stance and furrowing her brows to clear her thoughts. Soon enough, her brother's words dawned, suddenly making her feel extremely terrible. She dropped down beside her sister's huddled figure, putting a hand on her back. "Micky?" she questioned, her worries growing. "Are you okay? I didn't mean to hurt ya, sis."

"I'm... Fine," Micky winced breathlessly. "I was asking for that one."

"You sure?" she pressed, still worried. Shinki and Gabriel got down from their places, hurrying over to make sure Micky hadn't been seriously injured. Micky silently nodded her affirmation, her forehead rubbing on the surface of the ring as tears started to stream along the contours of her face into her hair.

Layla's eyebrows shot up in panic, looking up to the adults running for her and Micky. "I really didn't mean to! It was an accident!" she explained urgently to her father, brother, and sister, who was currently silently sobbing, her shoulders shaking as she tried to brace the pain.

Gabriel assured her, squeezing her shoulder, "I know you didn't mean to, Layla. Accidents happen." Kneeling down, Shinki lifted Micky into his arms, cradling her gently as he soothed her with hushes.

"Shh, it's alright, Micky," he assured her, moving wet hair out of her face. "Pai and me are here." Micky sniveled and leaned into her brother, trying her best to stop crying.

"I-I'm fine," she insisted, more worried about her sister than her current pains. "Tell Lala I'm fine. It-it doesn't even hurt that bad."

"She knows," Gabriel told Micky, taking her from Shinki. "Let's get you inside and get some ice for you."

As he handed her off, Shinki stopped for a moment and looked down at Layla. "Layla, do you mind walking Ban in the meantime?"

She looked up at him, knowing what he was doing and making a face before giving him a small shrug and a defeated sigh, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. "Okay... I guess." Shinki squeezed her hand in thanks before turning around again. Layla watched as they carried her twin inside, still worried about what'd transpired, building guilt eating at her conscience. She sighed and put her fingers to her lips as she walked over to the spot where they kept the dogs' stuff. Letting out a clear, ringing whistle, Layla mindlessly untangled the leashes as she waited for the hyperactive pup to get to her. She pulled on a pair of flip-flops after cleaning off her feet. _I hurt her. Really badly,_ she thought to herself as the pups planted themselves before her, tails wagging eagerly. She apologized to Luna as Bandido stood on his hind legs, pawing at the air before her in his excitement. Layla numbed herself as she hooked the leash onto his collar and sent Luna back into the house.

Pushing the iron-wrought gate open, she walked down the block, fighting the growing anxieties. _What if I crushed her stomach? She looked like she was in a lot of pain_, the girl mulled over in her head. _What if I hurt her so bad that she'll hate me? What if dad hates me now because I made her cry?_ Her lip quivered as she continued to walk the dog, her thoughts still rambling on. _What if she can't eat anymore because I crushed her stomach? What if she has to eat out of a tube for the rest of her life? What if she dies because she can't eat anymore and the tube doesn't work!?_ Layla started to hyperventilate at the thought, Bandido stopping to look at her, curious as to why they suddenly stopped. She groaned and started to walk again, bouncing back as she ran right into a metal pole. "OW!"

A bright, glaring yellow road sign stood in her path, diamond-shaped, with the clear warning emblazoned: **Blind Child**. As she rebounded off of the pole, instinctively holding her nose with her free hand, she snapped out, "Watch where you're goin', stupid..." Layla eyed it. "Pole..." She huffed, clenching her fists. Bandido trotted over to the sign and lifted his leg, promptly tinkling on the base before kicking dirt over it. Her eyes shifted down to the dog, who had just finished his business, and she couldn't help but grin. "Heh, that's right. Good dog." Bandido's tail wagged as he looked up at her before he caught a scent and started to bark at an olive-skinned boy with sunglasses sitting on his porch with a moderately-sized Border Collie at his exposed legs. The collie looked at the smaller dog, generally unamused.

She looked around. "What're you barking at? Huh?" she muttered to the dog before quickly finding the source of his ills, her eyes trailing to the boy on the porch. _Of course._ She called out, "Don't worry about him!"

He called back, "He was barking at me?"

"I think he was barking at your dog!"

"Oh! Okay!" After a moment where she looked in his direction and he looked kind of off, the boy suddenly laughed. "Why are we even yelling?!"

"'Cause you're all the way over there?!"

In response, he stood and walked over to his gate, his dog at his legs, curling and circling around him protectively. "It's alright, Walter," he told the dog. "I know where the gate ends." Bandido pulled Layla towards the two, curious about the other dog.

She sighed, being pulled along by the Westie. "Hold on - don't pull me! We'll check 'em out!"

The stranger tilted his head slightly. "What kind of dog do you have?"

"He's a Westie! What about you?" she asked as they got closer, noting that he was taller than her by quite a bit and was definitely older, probably a teenager already. The sunglasses were an oddity considering the dying sunlight, but who was she to judge? He grinned in her general direction.

"Border Collie. His name's Walter."

"This is Bandido; he's not as mean as he tries to be with all the barking and stuff." Bandido and Walter sniffed at each other through the gate. The boy smiled at her description.

"What does that mean?"

She shrugged, starting to grin with him. "It means he barks too much."

"I mean his name," he chuckled, leaning against the gate. "It's not English."

"Oh! Duh! His name means Bandit. It's Portuguese," she explained while laughing at herself.

"That should've been obvious. He must be a pretty big trouble-maker then." The curly-haired boy grinned, his long, dark, and smooth curls all over the place. They shifted a little, feeling a bit of awkwardness hanging in the air. He finally restarted their conversation after a rather pregnant silence. "Well... We know each others' dog's names. What's yours?"

"Well, my name's Layla."

"That's a nice name," he complimented, pushing his hair back as he reached down and rubbed at Walter's ears absentmindedly when the dog started to growl at Bandido for his attempts to invade his personal space.

Layla grinned, lightly tugging at Bandido's leash to discourage him from being rude. "Thanks, What's yours?"

"Leon."

"Nice to meet ya, Leon." The girl looked around, curiosity biting at her. She didn't meet many new people in this neighborhood, considering that she knew just about everyone. "What're you doing out here for?"

"Fresh air," he replied offhandedly. "Heard it's good for you and all."

"Well yeah..." Layla commented, scratching at the back of her head. "I guess it is... I've just never seen ya around before ya' know? Did you move here?"

He grinned again, shaking his head in response. "My parents like to keep me inside. They worry a lot but since I got Walter, they haven't been as bad."

"Good thing for you, huh?"

"Definitely," he nodded. "It smells a lot nicer out here than in my house. My mom uses these weird air-fresheners that make my head hurt a lot when I'm inside."

"I feel ya," she quipped. "I don't like fruity smelling stuff either."

He laughed. "I thought girls were supposed to like those kinds of things?"

"I'm not that kind of girl," she proudly stated, hands on her hips and her chest puffed out. Leon smiled a bit and tilted his head curiously.

"What kind of girl are you, then?"

She shrugged before beaming and pumping her fist out in the imitation of a punch. "I dunno - I like monster trucks and fighting!" Leon burst into laughter at that.

"You're a weird girl if I've ever met one!"

Layla's face twisted into an angry scowl at his comment. "Well what about you, huh?!" she snapped, irritated by his nerve. "I bet you're not so cool!"

"No, no, no," he gasped as he caught his breath. "Don't get me wrong, Layla. I like weird. Weird is cool."

Her temper sizzled a little before she calmed down again. "... Oh. Okay..."

"But honestly, I can't stand monster trucks. They're way too loud," he answered, scrunching up his nose. "And smelly."

She gave him an odd look._ What kind of guy doesn't like monster trucks? Monster trucks are totally amazing! The smell and the noise are the best part!_ But she conceded and said instead, "That's cool. So what do you like?"

He shrugged lightly. "Music. Movies and plays." Leon smiled as Walter's nose nudged at his hand. "I like dogs too."

"Okay." She paused and grinned. "You're alright, Leon, for being super boring."

"You're alright too, Layla," he responded with a bigger grin as he started to tease her. "For a weird little girl."

Layla scowled and stuck her tongue out at him. "Neh! Very funny!"

Leon waved a hand over her head. "How old are you anyway?" he inquired, frowning just the slightest bit. She noted that he seemed like he was looking for something. "I can't tell."

"I'm nine," she told him in a matter-of-fact tone, her hands finding her hips again as Bandido yawned and took to laying down since he figured they wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon. "How old are you? You're, like, mad tall."

"You're a baby!" he crackled before he gave his answer. "I'm thirteen."

"I'm not a baby, yo!" the girl protested profusely, pulling up a fist to his face. "You're just older than me, you... you butt-face!" Ignoring her retort, he reached out again, curiously, his fingers carefully feeling about, groping around for her head. One of his fingers brushed the crown of her head and he laid his hand atop it.

"You're way short," he decided.

_Why is this boy's hand- What the heck?_ "What're you doing?" she demanded, furrowing her eyebrows.

In an instant, he flinched and yanked his hand back, frowning softly as his brows knitted together in worry. "Sorry - I was checking to see how tall you were. I didn't mean to be rude."

_Weirdo._ Layla fixed her hair, running her hands through the sandy strands. "Nah... I guess it's cool, but why'd you have to do all that?" He shifted uncomfortably, his smile fading a bit. _What's up with him?_ she wondered as she waited for his answer.

"I'm kind of blind," Leon finally admitted.

She looked at him in genuine surprise. "Really?! No foolin'? For real?" Layla's face grew focused and amazed as she waved her hand in front of his face, trying to see if it was some kind of joke.

"I can feel a breeze going over my face," he deadpanned, not amused by her very typical response. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean that I don't know what's going on right in front of me."

She grimaced and moved her hand away from his face. "My bad... I was just trying to make sure you weren't being a liar."

"I don't see why I would lie about something like that..."

"People lie."

Leon sighed and rested his chin on his arms, visibly deflated now. "What's a little girl doing out here on her own anyway?"

"I'm not little!" she reminded him hotly. Layla paused and crossed her arms, looking at Leon, somehow feeling a pressure in her chest that needed to be released. "I'm walking my dog... I got sent out of the house too," she admitted. He frowned, lifting his head a little bit.

"Why?"

"Well... I kind of hit my sister really hard," she blurted after some difficulty, looking down at the ground. "And I think I crushed her stomach."

He laughed at that. "You can't crush people's stomachs just by punching them, Layla."

"She was crying a lot, okay?!" she protested, gripping onto the leash and making Bandido anxiously circle her, feeling her energy. "We were only pretending and I hit her really hard because she was making me mad." She sniffled, holding back tears. "She kept dodging me and making me miss and..." Her voice wavered. Leon unlocked the gate, pushing Walter back with his foot, before locking it again and hugging her tightly. Bandido jumped and barked at him.

"Shh," he begged the dog. "I promise I'm not hurting her." The Westie gave a gruff huff and turned away. Walter stood on his hind legs, propping a paw on the gate as he wondered what his owner was doing.

Layla looked up at him, appalled. No one hugged her. Even Micky rarely hugged her. Her own family didn't dare touch her. Her eyes brimmed up with tears. She felt stupid. Here she was, getting all upset in front of a complete and total stranger and he was _hugging her._ She should be punching his lights out, but her arms wouldn't move. Instead, she started to shake. "You really are strong," he said softly as he knelt before her, hugging her tightly.

"How would you know?" she choked out.

She felt him smile, his cheeks pushing out as he removed his sunglasses, holding them in his hands. "Because I can feel your muscles. I don't think I'd be calling you little if I could see you, if this is how you feel." He sighed and hugged her a little tighter, his voice pained. "And it takes a lot to tell other people when you're wrong and admit it when you're scared. I know what it's like to hurt people you love when you don't mean to."

Layla wavered and hugged him back, just as tightly, burying her face in his shoulder as she gripped onto the back of his shirt. Tears threatened, but never fell. Instead, she closed her eyes and, for once, put enough trust in a stranger to support her, even if she wasn't entirely sure about it. Leon stopped talking and hugged her until she was ready to let go. She trembled, a thousand thoughts rushing in her little head a second. She knew it wasn't really her fault that she'd hurt Micky so badly. _It was a mistake,_ she admitted to herself. _And those happen. She's still my sister and they promised she'd be fine. They promised..._

Leon took in a deep breath and pulled back, giving her a full view of his pale blue eyes and his filmed-over lens. _He really wasn't lying._ "We aren't the worst thing we've ever done," he told her firmly, as if reciting it from a recent memory. "Good people do bad things, but it doesn't make them bad."

"I know," she answered, barely audible.

He smiled at her, holding onto her shoulders. "Your sister isn't going to hate you; she's your sister and families forgive." Layla broke out in a small smile.

"Thanks. You really are alright."

"So are you," the boy assured her with a decent sized smile. He stood up again, slipping on his shades. "I think you should get going. It's starting to get cold, so I'm guessing the sun's setting." She nodded and turned away, hesitating for a second.

"I'll see ya?"

"Maybe." He smiled a bit wryly, making her think for a second he was older than a mere thirteen. "I can't tell you when, but I get the feeling we'll see each other again." Normally, ambiguity like his pissed her off, but she thought about it and nodded.

"I'll see you when I see you, bro!" She grinned and ran off, chased by her dog.

"I hope it's soon," he told Walter.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Let's play, guys. :D Humor me and fill out a mini-questionnaire since this is honestly my first true long-term and ambitious story and I seriously adore feedback and people who are nice and do me this favor get something nice. :3

1) What are your personal feelings about my OC's so far? Why? (If I get individual critiques, you get a double surprise!)

2) How's my pacing? Too fast? Too slow?

3) How do you think I represent the canon cast? If you could offer pointers, I can appreciate those. :3

4) What are your current assumptions about the direction of the story?

5) Is there a side-character (a.k.a. anyone except for Kimiko, or any of the older Pedrosas for the moment) that you'd like to see get a good and decent spotlight?


	9. Of Crows and Canines

**A/N:** Who remembers ZooPals? :O I loved those things.

Also, a temporary break in the writing of all chapters was induced by my visual muse, who became jealous of my literary muse's time in the spotlight. She wishes to apologize to my readers for being petty. Her gifts will be posted on my tumblr and her skills have been included into this chapter. :)

Double also, please remember to check out the "filler"chapter story "SoG Spotlights"~

**Disclaimer: **Until I one day finally get my truest Christmas wish, Xiaolin Showdown and all associated aspects are not mine. Layla is a borrowed character that just happened to fit really well in places, so Kidd Death allowed me to use them. :D (Ayame is pretty much the same.)

* * *

><p><em>"Maybe. Can't give away all the trade secrets, Kim." He frowned once he realized what he said. "Umm... Sorry. I didn't mean to get comfortable like that."<em>

_Kimiko shook her head, holding onto his wrists. "No. It's okay. Friends get to call me Kim, or Kimi. Whatever fits your fancy." He poked her nose, earning a wrinkle from her._

_"Then you get to call me Rai. Since we're friends and all now," he declared, leading her to the nearest Chinese place. She smiled softly._

_"I'd like that."_

**~*Of Crows and Canines*~**

The night had gone on without much of a hitch. Kimiko and Raimundo spoke about more advanced programs and languages (about an hour was wasted debating the pros and cons of Java versus C++ versus Haskell) and went on to talk about general nonsense until they'd spotted the time and decided it was about time to head home. They parted at the kitchen, Kimiko starting to head down into the basement, before she paused and looked behind her at him. "Thank you."

"For what?" he inquired curiously. "I should be thanking you for coming out with me."

Kimiko grinned. "Because I had a really great time. Night, Rai." He smiled back.

"Night, Kim."

She descended the stairs quietly, figuring Mari was either still working or asleep. _That girl deserves a medal for the world sleep-championships. _She frowned when she approached the door and heard Mari's quiet and hushed voice talking to someone._ Wait? She's up? Who's she talking to?_ Kimiko knew it was wrong and against most of everything she stood for and she really shouldn't, but she found herself pressing herself against the door to listen in.

"_Muy chistoso,_ Quinn," she heard Mari chuckle. _Quinn? Who's Quinn?_ A few seconds passed before Mari started to speak again. _Oh. She's on the phone._ "She's been out with Rai for the past couple of _horas_. I don't know when she'll be back." Kimiko scowled. _Why is she talking about me? How does this _Quinn_ even know anything about me?_ "Mmmhmm," Mari hummed. "_No se_ where that's going, _peeeero_ you're right about it being a kind of good thing." Kimiko listened to her friend's laugh and made a face. _Is she making fun of me in there?_ "You should be going to bed. It's almost _la cinco de la mañana_ over there, _chico-_ Oh real funny!" she laughed. "Don't even try it with my favorite songs! Go to bed, _lokito_. Tell Max that I said goodnight when you see him." _She's awfully friendly with this guy... _Kimiko thought to herself suspiciously, her fingers itching for the doorknob, stopping herself when she heard Mari sigh sorrowfully, forgetting all her suspicions when her best friend gave such an uncharacteristic sound. "_Buenas noches y que tenga sue_ñ_os bellos, _Quinn. _Hablamos_ tomorrow."

Kimiko stood there, back to the door, as she heard Mari end her conversation and shift around, preparing to finally and actually go to sleep. She could feel her heart beat in her throat. _She's keeping a secret from me. Why would she keep a whole person a secret from me? He's obviously important to her - Mari doesn't sigh like that. She's a happy girl and she doesn't sigh like that._ A stone lump set in her stomach. ..._ Right?_ She couldn't go into their room right then. It would be totally wrong. She had to know what was going on and she didn't want to let Mari know she'd been eavesdropping. Quietly pushing off the door, careful to not be heard, Kimiko went back up the stairs again and bit her lip. Who would she ask?

Her feet seemed to have an idea as they carried her up the next flight of stairs into the second floor residential ward. They walked past Gabriel and Yaritza, Kaiki, Nathalia, Omi, Andre, Micky and Layla, and even Raimundo's room. _Where am I even going?_ They stopped and she peered up at the trap door that led to the attic loft, feeling her heart hammering in her chest. _Shinki?_ Kimiko held her hand to her chest, swallowing nervously. _Would Shinki know?_ She took in a deep, ragged breath, unfurling her arm, stretching it, and stood on her tip-toes, lightly rapping on the ceiling. She stepped back, not entirely sure what she was doing and seriously contemplating the thought of running away and going back to her room, where Mari awaited her return. However, before she could gather her nerve to leave, the little door slid open and Shinki peeked down, his hair hanging down. He looked at her questioningly.

"I'm sorry if this is a bad time," she started. "I... I just wanted to ask you something. I'll go away if you're busy."

He started to chuckle lightly. "Give me a moment." He pulled his head back and let down the ladder so she could come up. Kimiko sighed as she laid a hand on it. _No turning back now._ She climbed up, suddenly aware of the fact that, although she'd seen everyone else's rooms, she'd never actually seen the inside of Shinki's. Her head peeked through and she jumped slightly when she saw him and a red-headed woman sitting a set of beanbag chairs together. "Umm... Was I interrupting something?"

"Nothing that was too serious," he assured her. Shinki put an arm around Red's shoulders, introducing her first. "Ayame, Hana, and I were just talking about school."

_Oh. So that's the Mysterious Red's name. Wait- Hana? Where's the third person? _Spotting her confusion, Ayame grinned and laughed, pointing to Shinki's computer, where a girl with black hair and wide, amber eyes peeked through the screen and waved, grinning widely. "Oh. Umm... Alright?" She pulled herself up, retracting the ladder, and closing the door behind her. She sat down nervously on the bag that Shinki indicated to. He grinned at her and laid his folded hands on his abdomen.

"How can I be of service to you, little house guest?"

"Ah..." Kimiko shifted in her chair.

"_Shinki, you're pressuring her,_" Hana chided from her place in the screen, having a light, but still prominent Japanese accent. "_Can't you see that she's nervous? Stop acting so comfortable!_"

He rolled his eyes. "I know that. Could you not be nosy for two seconds and shut up?"

Ayame whispered to her as the two bickered, "Don't worry about them; they argue a lot." Kimiko smiled at that, feeling slightly more at ease. With a swift click, Shinki muted Hana's microphone, earning a very angry glare and, by the looks of it, some very choice words from the short-haired girl, and looked back at his original guest.

"I'm sorry about that. She can't help but to talk sometimes."

"Who is that?" Kimiko asked.

Shinki smiled wryly. "My twin sister, Hana. We were separated when I was adopted by the Pedrosa family. _Pai_ kept us in contact; he thought it was important."

"Oh."

He unmuted the microphone, ignoring his sister as she flashed him a birdie. She tucked some hair behind her ear. "_He's so very terrible to me,_" she pouted, propping her chin on her fist. "_His only twin sister and he goes out of his way to make me look bad in front of everyone._"

"That's a lie and you know it," he accused. "You're the one who tries to embarrass me all the time."

Ayame grinned. "And here we see the fact that even siblings separated by miles and miles have their spats." She looked at Hana and Shinki. "Guys, you're being rude with your arguing."

"_I'm sorry._"

"Sorry."

"It's alright," Kimiko muttered. "_Ano_... Shinki?"

"Hmm?"

"Who's Quinn?"

He exchanged a look with the other two girls before looking back at her. He finally spoke. "He's Mari's version of Hana." She was about to say something, but he elaborated, "They're not related, but they're ePals. Everyone in this house has an ePal that our parents set up. They were paired since she got here to talk and stay in contact. Hana lives in Tokyo right now, but he kind of bounces between places."

Kimiko frowned. "Why wouldn't she tell me about him?"

"Well," he said, rolling his head to the side as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Maybe you should ask her. It's probably because she never found the right time to bring it up."

Kimiko looked sick. "Oh." Guilt tore at her from the inside as she mulled over this new information in her head. She sunk lower into the beanbag, feeling like scum for listening in on a private conversation. A silence descended on them, but Ayame saved the atmosphere.

"Those jeans are everything! Where did you get them?"**  
><strong>

"_They're very cute,_" Hana agreed from her place. Shinki opted to sit back and let them talk, his hands resting behind his head.

"Mari and I made them," she answered, smiling at the memory as she fingered the cut-off fringe.

"I like them. They're good quality fabric too." Ayame grinned at her as the other girl leaned forward, interested. "So tell us about yourself."

"_Yes!_" Hana chimed. "_Ne, S__hinki never bothered to mention your name. Start there!_" She stuck her tongue out at him when he glared at her.

"It's Kimiko Tohomiko," she told them quietly.

"_So you're Tohomiko-san's daughter!_" Hana gasped, bouncing excitedly. "_I work with your daddy!_" Kimiko blinked and leaned forward, intrigued.

She begged, "How is he? Is he alright?"

Hana laughed, folding her hands together and smiling widely as she answered, "_Always busy, but he talks forever about how he misses you so much._" Kimiko smiled at that, listening to what she had to tell. "_He works a little too much, but it's my job to make sure he gets sleep,_" she winked.

"Are you an intern?" Hana smiled and nodded in response. "What do you major in?"

Shinki cut in with a smirk. "She majors in sorcery; she's a mean and horrible witch." Kimiko rolled her eyes and looked at his sister.

"Seriously. What do you really major in?"

Hana giggled, grinning again as her hands covered her mouth. "_He said it; I'm a witch. I preform all sorts of exotic magic and lure kiddies into gingerbread houses and bake them into pies~_" Kimiko scowled a little.

Ayame shook her head and spared her. "She's his personal handler; she's majoring in business." She and Hana exchanged faces for ruining the facade.

"_Come on~ Magic sounds so much cooler!_"

"Thanks a lot, Red," Shinki sulked. "We were having fun." Ayame smirked and hugged him, kissing his cheek. He couldn't help but to smile, letting himself be hugged. Hana made a gag face, earning a giggle from Kimiko. She checked her watch.

"_Alright, guys. I have to get back to work._" She looked at the young Tohomiko. "_Is there anything you want me to tell your father, Kimiko?_"

She pursed her lips in thought_. How can I send just one thing? There's so much I want to say and too little space to say them._ How could she be expected to pick just one thing to say? She sighed and looked up at Hana. It was best to go safe. "Tell him that I love him and miss him and to call soon if he can."

Hana saluted her. "_Will do!_" Giving a final, cheerful wave, the call ended and there were three.

"Is there anything else you needed?" Shinki asked as Ayame wiggled into his lap coyly, fixing her bright red hair and skirt. He grinned at her and hugged her waist, resting his nose at the nape of her neck.

Kimiko made a face. _Uh... __I got the message, guys._ "... No. I think I'm alright for now." She stood up, motioning Shinki to stop his attempt to get up, ("I can let myself out," she assured him) and walked back over to the waiting ladder. "Thanks for everything."

"It was nice meeting you~" Ayame called, a hand running through Shinki's long hair, letting it loose from the hair tie. Shinki took her hand, kissing her fingers gently, before he turned to Kimiko, smiling widely. "No problem - come to me if you ever need anything else."

Kimiko opened the door and waved. "Got it." She jumped through the opening, closing the trapdoor on her way through. _That was... Interesting?_ She started to walk away, sparing a glance at the window down the hall, curiously noting a crow on the windowsill. She froze. A chill descended her spine as she locked eyes with it, getting the eerie feeling that it was staring right through her. She pulled her shawl around herself a little tighter, suddenly feeling exposed. _That's silly, Kimiko,_ she chided herself as she slowly backed away, the crow never breaking its gaze from her. _Crows wouldn't know who you are. Besides, they're free animals - they can rest on whatever windowsills they please. It's just a coincidence!_ Her heart practically broke through her chest when, out of nowhere, a silvery fox-figure immediately snapped the crow into its jaws, forcing out a croaked gurgle from the bird as it lay dying in the fox's reddening mouth. The vulpine glanced at her and she felt a sense of peace descend on her again, not helping but to feel like it was familiar.

Walking over to the window carefully, Kimiko watched in amazement as the fox nimbly ran along the trimmings of the villa and jumped back down to the lawn, blinking when it met up with a pure white wolf accompanied by an earthy buck and doe, depositing the crow at the others' feet. _What the hell? _She rubbed her eyes and they were gone. _... I think it's time to go to bed, Kimiko. You've been up way too long._ She shook her head, trying to clear it, as she walked back down. She hesitated when she found herself at the door going into her and Mari's room. "You gotta face her sometime," she breathed before gathering up her strength and walking into the room. Kimiko kicked off her sneakers, pulling the shawl over her head, tossing it onto her bed, and wiggling out of her jeans and into one of her PJ shorts before climbing into Mari's bed (greeting Luna and apologizing for disturbing her) and hugging her tightly. As she expected, Mari stayed blissfully asleep and ignorant, but adjusted to the new body heat, curling into her. "I'm sorry..." she whispered. "I'm so sorry for being a bad friend."

To her surprise, she got a reply, getting to look at turquoise through the dim light. "_Nuncas puedes ser_ _mala amiga_." Mari squeezed a hug out of her, smirking at Kimiko's shocked expression. "By the way, next time, learn how to control _los _angry-kimi breaths. I could've heard them a mile away."

"You knew I was there!?"

"Duh," Mari yawned as she pulled away, propping herself up on her elbow, and reaching for her glasses. "I'm not deaf; _sabes?_"

Kimiko scowled, not feeling quite so remorseful anymore. _This little jerk-face!_ "So, instead of stopping me, you let me go back up, feeling like a terrible person?"

"Oh please. It was _tu sufrimiento_ for being a listening-larry," Mari sniffed, sliding her glasses onto her nose. She shrugged and rubbed at her neck, yawning again. "Then again, now I don't have to find the right time to say something anymore. You win some, you loose (- intentional typo) some." Kimiko scowled at her, crawling up onto her knees and lifting her pillow. "Uh... _¿Què haces?_" Mari asked nervously, looking up at her. Kimiko swung down as Mari squealed, instantly pulling her arms up to protect herself from the onslaught of pillow-blows.

"You," Kimiko seethed with every hit. "You. Let. Me. Go. And. Didn't. Frikkin. Stop. Me. And. Made. Me. Go. Through. The. Trouble. Of. Bothering. Your. Brother. Because. You... You thought it'd be a suitable punishment!?" She scowled even harder and tried to smoother the struggling Hispanic with the pillow.

"_¡Para!_"

"Why should I?!"

"I'll let you meet him _mañana_!"

Lifting the pillow, she looked down at her friend."Tomorrow?"

"_Si,_" she coughed, catching her breath. "Tomorrow. I promise." Kimiko stared down at her as Mari simply sighed and reached up, pulling her down into a hug. "_Eres tan mala._ You're so mean."

"You're meaner," Kimiko muttered into her friend's skin. "I can't believe you."

"Says Listening-Larry," she retorted, hugging onto her a little more.

"Jerk."

"Mmhmm."

They fell into a small silence after that. Kimiko closed her eyes as she hugged her, feeling every bit of softness that was Mari. She inhaled, relishing in the bright, sweet smell of mango and citrus, feeling at peace. She sighed. "I'm sorry I listened in."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," Mari sighed back.

"Are you going to tell Keiko?"

"... I don't know yet."

"... Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I didn't know how to say it," Mari answered after a brief pause. "Quinn is... Special to me."

Kimiko looked at her. "Special?"

"_Kimi, ahora no_," she pleaded. "Not right now."

"... Will you at least tell me about him?"

Mari sighed and shifted a bit. "Well... His full name is Quincey Lancanster Brigands." She stared up at the ceiling, seeming far off as she listed the facts. "He has a little brother named Maxwell. I've known them since I was ten. Quinn is eighteen right now and Max is fifteen. They're the sons of a really rich family. They're from the UK. Right now, they're staying in Scotland for the summer, but they normally live in England at a fancy boarding school." Kimiko felt Mari's skin warm up. "Quinn and I are... pretty close."

"You don't have to tell me anything else," she told her. Mari squeezed her in gratitude.

With the conversation dropped and out of the way, Kimiko rolled off of her and dozed off beside her best friend. Mari curled up and got comfortable on her side after putting her glasses away. As they drifted off, Kimiko couldn't help but to smile to herself as she recalled the memories of her time with Raimundo. He was a lot sweeter than she'd expected and they had a lot in common. She glanced behind her and frowned a bit. _I don't like him. I can't like him... Not when he and Mari are so close._

Her dreams seemed to not care as she found herself in a lavish digital land, looking at her futuristic attire. She grinned as she looked off to the side and looked right at Raimundo. They grinned back at each other and ran off, hopping onto light cycles and taking down the bad guys, zooming through the landscape. She grinned and leaped off, falling into his arms and laughing as he spun her. He hugged her and she felt happy. Kimiko looked off and her eyes widened as a sense of cold ran through her.

_Kimi?_

She shivered involuntarily, remembering the piercing and disgusting yellow-eyed glare offered to her earlier, feeling every bit of the chill that ran through her when they'd locked eyes. Nightmares filled with caws and black feathers haunted her, screaming out as talons ripped at her skin, marring her with shreds of crimson and oozing wine-colored muck that dripped into leeches, tapering at everything she was. Flashes of black and green danced along, mixed with smog as she lay bound by thorns and decaying roses as an ivory cat gleefully danced on her abdomen, hearing malignant laughter screech throughout the hellish scenery. A snake glided at her feet, taking in the scent of them. A stray ax came flying and sliced its head clean off. The body continued to move, but the head transfigured into a goldfish. It blinked and she blanched as the thing grew eyes larger than her head. She gritted her teeth, feeling positively wretched as mantis and malachite daggers cleaved her and scattered her pieces into the hurricane of her innermost fears. Gripping onto herself, she knelt on broken glass, telling herself not to cry. Her avatar refused to listen as she looked into a mirror and saw an angry skull staring right back at her, its carapace still hanging off its bones, as her fresh blood-filled tears streamed. She shrieked as it broke through and swallowed her whole, closing her eyes tightly.

_Kimiko._

When she opened them, she looked right into the eyes of the same silvery fox and white wolf from earlier, surrounded by teal flames. She felt at peace again, looking down and seeing herself free of marks and scars, decorated in a beautiful turquoise kimono. She glanced up again and found herself looking into the face of an albatross, feeling a light breeze circling them. She reached for it and smiled as it ate seeds from her hands. An ebony cat came at her and swiped for her arm, drawing blood, causing her to hiss out in pain as the albatross flew away. It licked its claws as she stared at it. It stared back with olive green eyes. She reached for it, but it vanished into steam just as everything erupted into a raging wildfire.

_Kimiko!_

Who in the world was calling for her? The fire continued to rage around her, the black and white cat appearing through the flames, hissing at the other. She was in the center of it, but she felt warm. The intense heat felt amazing on her skin. She felt _alive._

_KIM!_

What in the- **SPLASH!** Kimiko coughed and sputtered as she was forced into the waking world, taking in a huge gulp of air as she felt arms surround her and pull her into them. She blinked the sleep haze away and wiped water out of her eyes before she looked right into the most marvelous sea-green eyes she's ever recalled seeing. "Am I awake?" she breathed groggily.

A collective sigh of relief went around as the person holding her hugged her tightly. She looked around, finally half-way conscious enough to remember where and who she was. Kaiki stood at the door, looking at her in concern as he hugged Mari into his chest. Shinki and Omi sat on the bed, looking at her in absolute relief. She looked to the side and he pulled back. "Yeah," Raimundo told her. "You're awake now."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** And here we have an odd chapter. R&R? :3


	10. Something's Rotten

**A/N: ***Starts whistling the tune of the dwarves from Snow White* My pictures are being posted on Tumblr as well as DeviantART, so be sure to follow me on either (although I'm far more accessible via Tumblr). I have a pretty serious art itch lately? So you guys might be more gratified stalking there to get your dosage of SoG content?

Also, a big thank you to all of my reviewers for supporting me, as is always, but especially to everyone that followed me to Tumblr and DeviantART and posted all sorts of amazing/uplifting comments~

**Disclaimer: **Holy Zombie-Guy. From this point on, No mas with disclaimers. XS = Christie Hui's. Any other characters/OC's are borrowed with permission. Now we may get on with the story, but as always I must cite the fact that Kidd Death is great and now we add Captain Blue and Arashi the Solar Phoenix to the list of awesome guys. :D (The latter two are my super cool and shiny betas.)

* * *

><p><em>What in the- <em>_**SPLASH!**__ Kimiko coughed and sputtered as she was forced into the waking world, taking in a huge gulp of air as she felt arms surround her and pull her into them. She blinked the sleep haze away and wiped water out of her eyes before she looked right into the most marvelous sea-green eyes she's ever recalled seeing. "Am I awake?" she breathed groggily._

_A collective sigh of relief went around as the person holding her hugged her tightly. She looked around, finally half-way conscious enough to remember where and who she was. Kaiki stood at the door, looking at her in concern as he hugged Mari into his chest. Shinki and Omi sat on the bed, looking at her in absolute relief. She looked to the side and he pulled back. "Yeah," Raimundo told her. "You're awake now."_

**~*Something's Rotten in the Villa of Pedrosa*~**

Kimiko looked around again. "Why... Why is everyone in our room?" she asked breathlessly as Raimundo held her steady, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach. _He smells nice._ Mari gave a cry and ran to her, hugging her tightly.

"_¡__Chiquilla!_"

Raimundo grunted and shifted so Mari wasn't in his face anymore. ("I love you and all, Ri-ri, but you need to get the meaning of 'personal space'.") "We couldn't wake you up for nothing, girl," he told Kimiko.

_What? _She grew pale as brief lapses from her nightmares ran across her memories again. "What do you mean?"

Shinki approached them and explained, "We've been trying to wake you up for the past hour. You woke Mari up when you started screaming and she tried to rouse you. When she couldn't, she came and got me and _Pai_. I came with Omi, because he'd heard you, and we all tried, but it wouldn't work. 'Ki ran down when he heard you scream again and brought Raimundo down with him. When they couldn't wake you..." He tilted his head to the side. "Rai got the idea to splash you with water."

"_Moça_, you were harder to wake up than Mari on a Saturday morning!" Kaiki interjected, blinking when Shinki nudged and glared at him. ("Dude. Not even cool," he chided his younger brother quietly.)

"It was most difficult," Omi nodded.

"... Oh." She curled into Mari, blankly looking off. Shinki and Raimundo exchanged a look when she fell silent. Mari hugged her friend tightly, muttering Spanish and Portuguese niceties into her ear to calm her, but she didn't notice. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to find peace from her earlier scare. She opened her eyes again when she heard the door open and saw Gabriel standing at the door with a cup of water. He smiled at her and handed it off to Kaiki.

"I'm glad you've awakened. You gave us quite the scare."

She glanced to the side as Omi stepped towards her. "If..." He stood before her and took one of her hands, holding it tightly in reassurance. "If you do not mind, would you tell me what it was that you were dreaming of?" Kimiko breathed in.

"I... Don't really remember anymore."

"Anything you say may be of great help," he pressed.

She closed her eyes, shifting uncomfortably as she recalled scattered bits and pieces of her dreams. "I... Remember that there was a crow... And a snake. And a really creepy skull" she took in a deep breath and blurted, "and a silver fox and a white wolf and so much fire, but..." She smiled a bit as she recalled the warmness, not noticing as Shinki and his father frowned. "I didn't mind the fire; it felt so wonderful."

Omi rubbed his chin as he contemplated the symbols. Gabriel cut in before the small Asian boy could finish his train of thought, gently pushing everyone aside. "We need to give her some space. She's obviously had a very terrible dream and us hording around her would make it worse." He knelt and smiled at her.

He gaped. "But-"

"Omi," the patriarch said, looking at him sternly. "It's not up for debate. Go upstairs with Kaiki and Shinki and back to sleep in your room. We have this handled." With a last glance and a strong frown, Omi followed as Shinki led his younger siblings up the stairs. Raimundo looked at him confused; he wasn't going to send him up? Gabriel ignored the look and sat down on one of the nightstands. "_Levante-se_. The bed is still wet." Raimundo and Mari stood up promptly, Raimundo still holding onto Kimiko. Gabriel glanced at his son. "You can put her down now, Raimundo."

Both of them flushing as the realization hit, Raimundo immediately let her down. Mari eyed them suspiciously, but said nothing. "_Desc-_ Sorry," he started to his father, remembering mid-way that he meant to apologize to Kimiko, nervously rubbing at the back of his neck as he corrected himself. "I meant to say sorry."

She shook her head, staring down at her feet as she assured him softly, "It's alright." Mari put her hands on Kimiko's shoulders and rubbed them, unused to seeing her friend in such a state.

Gabriel took her hands. "Kimiko, are you feeling alright?" She nodded meekly. _As alright as I can be..._ "How about you dry off and we all get ourselves a late night snack?" he asked, making her eyes swell with tears and her heart grow heavy as she was reminded of her father. She tried her best not to turn into a sobbing mess right then, but she missed him terribly.

"Okay," she forced out. Gabriel's face softened and pulled her into a hug. He smelled very masculine; the scent of a musky cologne was strong on him and the undertone of soaps and shampoos was mixed in with his wife's spice-filled aroma. It was a very comforting odor, but Kimiko buried her face into the man's shoulder, shaking as she wished, more than anything, to see her papa and smell his warm and metallic scent right then. _Papa... I miss you... More than anything. I want you to hold me. I want you to tell me it's okay. Why can't you be here? _She wasn't sure how long she stayed there, hugging her best friend's father._  
><em>

Mari cleared her throat gently. "_Pai... _It's about _las sies y media;_ You have to get ready for work."

He sighed and pulled away, smiling at her. "I didn't realize it was so far into the morning. We'll have to take a rain check on that snack." Kimiko immediately missed the warmth, but said nothing as he straightened out and took his daughter's hand. "Thank you for reminding me, Mariana. Make sure your friend is alright."

"I will," she whispered. He kissed her head and allowed Raimundo to give Kimiko a comforting hug goodbye before he led him out of the room to give them some privacy.

Raimundo sighed, not sure of what'd just happened, and asked his father, "Pai... What just ha- Hey! Where are you going?"

"To bathe, Raimundo," Gabriel informed him. "I'm very sorry, but I have work to go to."

"Yeah... That's right," he muttered, kicking up invisible dirt as his father walked away, avoiding his questions. "Yep. Go ahead and run from me. That's cool. I didn't care about it anyway." The teen grumbled to himself as he walked up the stairs, wishing more than anything to be able to fall right back into his bed again. He blinked in interest when he found Kaiki and Omi waiting at his door. They exchanged looks. "Ah... Anything I'm missing, guys?"

"We're calling Kid-Council," Kaiki declared quietly. When Raimundo rose a brow at the sudden declaration, Omi picked up.

"There have been many outside places things going on down in here."

Raimundo yawned widely, covering his mouth as he half-consciously corrected him. "'Many things out of place going on up in here'."

"What you have said," he nodded.

"What about Shin?" He questioned, curiously noting a lack of their oldest brother, who normally was head of their 'Kid-Council'.

Kaiki frowned with Omi. "We think he's in on the secret our parents are keeping from us. If we included him in the council, he'd work to keep us from figuring it out and you know he's good at that sort of thing."

Omi narrowed his eyes. "That one is a most sly individual."

"... Omi, all someone has to do to distract you is make fun of your head, compliment your skills, bring out something shiny, or mention squirrels."

"... I do not see how that is relevant to out situation."

Kaiki and Raimundo both rolled their eyes before looking at each other. "So..." Kaiki trailed. "Are we set?"

"Sure thing, bro. When?"

"Tonight."

"So soon?"

Omi jumped up before Kaiki could explain. "Kimiko's dream is the key! I must speak to her as soon as possible to retrieve the details."

"Wait, wait, wait." Raimundo shook his head, trying to understand what was going on, despite his tired state. "I don't get it. It was just a nasty nightmare."

"It was prophetic in nature," Omi insisted. "Dreams are the mind's way of trying to tell people things they wish to ignore." Kaiki shrugged, confirming Raimundo's suspicion that the little Chinese boy had told him the same thing and he'd been just as skeptical.

He groaned and rubbed his head, still not quite getting it. "Aye. You and your oriental-ass mojo-jojo crap. I'll go to the council and you can explain it then. Right now, Rai needs sleepy-bai." He pushed his siblings aside and waddled for his door, groaning when Kaiki stopped him.

"... Don't tell Shinki."

"I know, K. Councils are top-secret, remember?" Raimundo stated wryly as he opened his door. The brothers exchanged a small smile as he walked into his room and promptly collapsed onto his bed, thoughts littering his head and keeping him from falling back asleep. _Now that they mention it... Shin and Pai were awfully tense downstairs. _He reached out to his nightstand, where all his family frames stood proudly. His fingers wrapped around a particular worn blackwood with only one other twin and he rolled onto his back to stare up at the memory stored in the ink.

He'd only been a newborn when Shinki came into the family, who'd then been a mere freshly-four years old, but as far back as he could remember, he recalled always having a great connection with his adopted brother, despite their differences. His parents raised and loved them together, as if they were a unit. _Pai_ would always tell them that they were the oldest of the pack; it was their job to protect everyone together. Shinki never treated him like a child four years his younger. Sure, he stuck up for him when times got bad and he needed someone at his side like an older brother would, but he never excluded him because of his age. He never kept things from him. He always told him the truth as it was and they were never the kind to keep secrets from each other. Staring at their faces, smushed together with mud, dirt, artificial blades of grass, and black beads from the old soccer field covering about every inch of their bodies and the bright white grins beneath all the filth...

Raimundo couldn't help but wonder when they'd grown so far apart as he touched the image of his childish face. He didn't want to believe that he was being kept secrets from, but there was just... so many odd things going about the house and Shinki never had time to answer his concerns anymore. He'd seen a silver fox trotting the premise before and he had a sneaking suspicion that he hadn't been hallucinating if its image was invading the dreams of a newcomer into the household. He sighed again and rolled over, tossing the frame onto a pile of clothes in the corner. He didn't want to think about it right now.

It seemed far too soon when Micky was suddenly on his stomach, jumping up and down as she demanded for him to wake up and Layla, the other brat, took to throwing soft punches and pokes at his back. "_Ay, _I got it. I'll get up," Raimundo groaned. "What's the emergency?"

"Ka-Ki told us to tell you to get your lazy butt to the Shack," Layla informed him.

"I thought we told you to stop calling him poop."

Layla grinned with Micky. "But it's fun!" Raimundo pushed the girls off of him once he glanced over at the time, surprised to see he'd slept for about eighteen straight hours, grumbling as they squealed and held onto each other to keep from falling off of the bed. He yawned widely, picking them up and carrying them under his arms, despite their wiggles and protests.

"You guys are getting heavy," he informed them.

"Or you're getting weaker!" Layla retorted.

"Yeah!" Micky grinned devilishly. "I bet Lala's stronger than you now!"

He snorted as they shifted so he was holding Layla on his back and Micky in one arm. "She probably is!" Layla grinned to herself proudly. "That girl's strength is not even human though, so she doesn't even count."

"Oi!" she protested, poking his ear. "I got all strong fair and square." They exchanged a smirk and laughed as he carried them out to the Shack_. _Named by himself, Shinki, and Kaiki when they'd helped their father build it, The Shack was actually a moderately large tree house they concluded would be the center of the family's mini-politics. All nine children would clamor into the structure (recently improved by Shinki as Engineering practice) whenever an issue would arise in the house. Shinki and Raimundo were normally the officiators of such meetings, dubbed "The Kid-Council", keeping everyone from letting things get out of hand. As he let the twins down so that they may climb up the rope ladder, he couldn't help but to think about how odd it was to be excluding the oldest Pedrosa. Pulling himself up into the place, he looked around to see the faces of all his siblings and their newest addition sitting amongst the collection of beanbags and throw rugs. Picture frames, plastered doodles, and all sorts of posters littered the walls and Chinese lanterns and Christmas lights hung from the ceiling, illuminating everyone despite the dark and humid summer night.

"Hey, Kim."

She smiled at him and he couldn't help but to smile with her. "Hey, Rai."

Mari's face scrunched up, her hands finding her hips, neck loosening up. "Hold **THE **phone. _Cuando_ did this whole 'Rai' and 'Kim' thingy happen between you two?!" Raimundo felt his spine straighten as she forced her glare onto him especially, and he couldn't help but think that she was spending far too much time with their mother; they were starting to look more alike than he was comfortable with.

"Mari..." Kimiko muttered. "You're overreacting."

"AND?!" She stood up and wailed, earning a groan from everyone in the Shack. "_Mi mejor amiga_ is being stolen by my brother! I have every right to be upset, Kimiko Tohomiko!"

Raimundo and Kimiko exchanged a look, surprising him when he realized it was an almost synchronized motion. He grinned when she projected that they were thinking the very same thing: _This girl is nuts._ He stood up and commanded, "Mari, sit that fat butt of yours down. K and Omi called K-C and you're cutting into their time."

She gasped, putting her hands over her buttocks. "You will not speak of _mi culito_, traitor!"

"More like _culoto,_ but still! Plant it before you're expelled!" he emphasized forcefully, grinning with his other siblings as she pouted and did as she was told, ignoring her look that definitely told him that this was far from over. He cleared his throat and pulled out a notepad from a compartment in the wall. "Nat, stat report on locations of Shinki, _Mãe_, _e__ Pai_."

Nathalia cleared her throat and tucked some hair behind her ear as she pulled out a notebook and shared notes. "All are out and about. Last I checked, we have about three hours before _Mãe_ _e__ Pai_ come back home with Andre. Shinki is confirmed to be locked in his room for the night."

"Cool. Twins!" he called out. "Is ammo ready to chase away peeping adults?"

"Heck yeah!" they grinned, holding onto an assortment of water guns and balloons. Micky and Layla looked at each other and fist-pounded slyly as Kimiko gaped on in amazement at this whole process.

"Mari! Snacks?"

"Cooked up _y listo_," she confirmed and hopped up, distributing some little white boxes. Raimundo looked over at Omi and Kaiki.

"The floor's all yours, guys."

Kaiki stood up first, self consciously trying not to hit his head on some of the lower-hanging beams in the structure. He took in a deep breath and sat down on the only actual chair in the space. "Honestly... I really don't know how to say this," he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, ruffling up the mass of frizz and waves on his head. "I mean... I don't want to think that they are... I really, really don't want to think that they are... But..."

"Just spit it out already, Ka!" the twins called out harmoniously.

He jumped, startled into bluntness. "Shinki and the others are keeping something from us!"

Mari looked amused. "I think everyone's keeping something from someone."

"No," he huffed, shaking his head. "Not something like this. I don't know what it is, but it's huge, Mari."

Layla called out from her place, laying upside-down on one of the beanbags, "What even makes you think that? They could be planning someone's birthday party or something."

"Andre is turning six soon," Micky reaffirmed for her sister.

"Guys," Kaiki sighed. "I know it isn't just that. This morning, they were acting really shifty and I've noticed some really weird things happening lately."

Kimiko asked quietly, the room falling silent when she spoke. "What kind of weird things?"

Kaiki buried his face in his hands. "When I saw it, I thought I was hallucinating, but I saw... a wolf walking around the other day. It had some kind of lizard in its mouth."

"Was this wolf white?" Omi inquired.

"Yeah! How did you-" He gaped. "You saw it too?!"

A mummer ran through the room. Nathalia spoke up. "Did... Did anyone else see a fox running around? Not just any fox-"

"A gray-colored one," Raimundo interrupted, closing his eyes solemnly in thought. Looks were exchanged as an eerie sense of unease descended into everyone. Kimiko's heart hammered in her chest. So she hadn't been crazy when she'd seen the animals last night.

She clenched her fist to her stomach and started slowly, "Last night... I went to go see Shinki." Everyone's eyes lay on her as she reaccounted her memory. She closed her eyes as she recalled the details. "It wasn't until I came down into the hallway, but... There was a crow in the window. It... was... so..." She struggled for the right word to describe it.

"Blood-curling?" Nathalia tried.

"Yeah... That..." Kimiko folded her hands together as everyone patiently awaited for her to finish her story. She regathered her thoughts and picked back up. "The fox you guys mentioned... It killed the crow and took its body back down to meet up with the wolf... And" she scrunched up her nose, unsure of how to word the next part. "I think a Doe and a Buck."

"... That's some freaky crap, girl," Raimundo commented, stating what everyone was thinking.

"I thought I'd been hallucinating when I saw them, but then I saw them in my dreams."

Omi walked over to her and took her hands. "Speaking of this dream... Kimiko, I have a request. I am not sure if you will like it, however."

Looking at him with curiosity in her eyes, she frowned a bit. "What is it, Omi?"

"I'd like to make you remember your dream."

"What the hell?" Mari demanded. "Why in the world would you do that, Omi?! Did you not remember how freaked out she wa-" Kimiko silenced her and urged him to explain.

Omi nodded his head in gratitude and resumed. "Dreams are sometimes significant. Something is kicking the front of my ear-"

"Ticking at the back of my head!" Raimundo called out.

"- That. I feel that your subconscious is relaying a very important message. I wish to interpret it for you. It may lead to clarity in our present situation, considering you mentioned the odd animals we have all seen."

"We haven't!" Micky called out.

"Shut up!" Kaiki called to the back of the room. They scowled at him, but he ignored them and returned to looking at Kimiko and waiting for her response.

"I..." she took in a nervous breath. "I guess so."

"Wonderous!" Omi clapped, making her even more nervous with his zeal. "Now, if you may... Lay your head on my lap and we may begin the exercise."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: So sorry for the long time it took to update! D: I finished a draft a while ago, but I hated it and I couldn't figure out why for the life of me. Eventually, I just rewrote and rewrote until I was happy. :) So... Here you are and I hope to update sooner next time. :D


	11. ANNOUNCEMENT

**THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE AND NOTICE TO ALL! YOU MUST READ IF YOU FOLLOW THIS STORY!**

Dear Reviewers/Followers,

First of all, yes. I will be finishing the story. I promised I would and so I will. Secondly, I want to thank you all for your support so far. Honestly, I love the fact that some people do enjoy my thoughts and my story.

However, while I realize I won't be getting any fans and probably a lot of hate with the following words, I needed to write this notice in order to let you all know that from this moment on, this story will become a Gen fic. I am taking it from the RaiKim section and leaving it in Kimiko's, considering this is mostly her story. If you dislike or resent that fact, because you were only reading my story for the sake of the RaiKim, I apologize and I welcome you to unfollow me and my story. My feelings won't get hurt :) I promise. I do suppose I owe you guys an explanation as to why.

1) While I do like RaiKim and its aspects, I don't and never intended for it to become the focal point of the story. It was always an epic story with a dash of RaiKim flavoring on the side. It is really disheartening to see a review and see someone demanding more RaiKim moments instead of actually commenting on the core of my story. I don't find it fair that I pour all this love and attention to detail and spend hours upon hours planning and fixing and writing and worrying... Just for people to demand something so insubstantial compared to everything else. There is absolutely nothing wrong with fluff and I like to include it because I do love romantic moments, but it isn't all that's going on and I refuse to let it be the only draw into it. I want to hear you guys asking for character-defining moments. I want to hear you guys asking me to build the characters, not a relationship that hasn't happened and wasn't originally going to happen for a while.

2) I am getting really sick and tired and annoyed with people constantly demanding that I update as if I owe them my time. As I said, I put love into everything I write. I don't update just for the hell of it and I refuse to start. If the constant harping and harassment is what I have to endure to put out a good story? I'd rather see some readers go. A sweet comment with a little "I hope you update soon~" attached to it doesn't bother me, but "UPDATE!" and "PLEEEEEASEEE UPDATE LIKE NOW" puts a lot of unnecessary stress on me because I really, really, really **DO** want to make you guys happy, but it's me and my happiness that comes before having to satisfy however many readers I have.

3) Kidd Death and I had... issues. I mention him a lot for a reason. He is an integral aspect of the production of the story and we have a lot of things to work out and I don't need the stress mentioned above in addition to dealing with our personal dynamic, so while we figure that whole deal out since I am borrowing some of his ideas and contributions, updates will be a lot slower. I am eternally sorry for that one. I do feel guilty about not updating as soon as I can, but it's a really pressing issue that I don't feel like explaining any further than it's a kind of really big deal.

4) I just want people to enjoy my story for what it is. :/ Not because it's a shipfic. While I realized in the beginning that I would get some people who support me only because it's a shipfic, I really didn't anticipate the sheer number and it depresses me. Again, I apologize eternally because I had to shatter all these expectations, but I write for me. Not for anyone else. I'd rather lose readers than lose me.

Everyone, while I won't apologize for my feelings, I'll apologize because I really do want to make people happy and because I've disappointed some of you. Again, you are welcome to leave, but everyone else... If you do stay... I promise that you will get nothing except for the best possible story I could ever deliver and that is a definite. Everyone who leaves, thank you so much for staying with me so far and encouraging me with your reviews! I am working right on the next chapter and the update will be coming very soon, so keep a look out for it!


	12. Let Sleeping Friends Lie

**A/N**: Ah… So I'm kind of trying to get back into the groove of writing again. Umm… Issues have been pretty much resolved… It's really just a matter of getting back into the habit ^^; I am so, so, so sorry this took this long! D:

* * *

><p><em>"We haven't!" Micky called out.<em>

_"Shut up!" Kaiki called to the back of the room. They scowled at him, but he ignored them and returned to looking at Kimiko and waiting for her response._

_"I..." she took in a nervous breath. "I guess so."_

_"Wonderous!" Omi clapped, making her even more nervous with his zeal. "Now, if you may... Lay your head on my lap and we may begin the exercise."_

_**~*Let Sleeping Friends Lie*~**_

"Kimiko!"

"Keiko!"

The two friends embraced each other tightly; glad to be reunited after even mere days apart (though if you asked them: it felt more like months). Friday had arrived and suddenly, Kimiko found herself thinking all the wrongs in her world had suddenly been rectified. What were crows? What was homesickness? What even was culture shock? Keiko was here for the weekend and she and Mari would serve as the perfect distraction to everything in her disrupted sense of normalcy. That was all that matter-

**Nope.**

She did not just see a black streak fly just past the gate.

**Nope. Just-**

That was not -

**MONKEY! THAT WAS A MONKEY.**

_STOP._

As far as she was concerned, no troubles or odd and creepy things even existed. Not when _Keiko_ was here! Keiko, the bit of normalcy and stability she'd ever had throughout her life. Everything was always better with a hug and a cup of tea with Keiko. Hugging her beacon of hope warmly, Kimiko almost didn't notice when-

"Mari!"

Interrupting her thoughts when she swooped in and grabbed both of them in a crushing hug, Mari grinned at them endearingly in that way she does. "I hope you weren't planning on leaving _moi_ out of your little hug!"

_This little- _Kimiko grunted, trying to squirm away with Keiko. "No!" Keiko sassed. "Never! What would give you that idea?!"

"It's not like you love to squeeze the life out of people or anything!" Kimiko added, struggling some more_. Jeeze, she's strong!_

"I missed you too, _corazon~_" Mari cooed, releasing them from her grasp.

"Not even cool," Kimiko coughed, catching her breath. Despite their matching jubilant grins, both girls gave Mari a vengeful shove, earning a squeal and a stumble. Recovering instantly and always full of energy, Mari clapped and bounced about, curls springing around with her.

"_Chicas_~ This is the first sleepover at my house! Oh! I just know we're gonna have th-"

"Mari!" Raimundo interrupted as he approached. Kimiko smiled at him when his eyes immediately found hers. "Ma wants you!"

"Coming!" she called back, smiling apologetically to her friends before running off towards the house again.

Keiko and Kimiko glanced at each other, exchanged looks and looked up at Rai, who was grinning awfully widely at them…

"'Sup, Keiko? Kim?"

"How you doing, Rai?" Keiko greeted back with a smirk, hands on her hips as Kimiko coyly looped her arm with the Brazilian's – he couldn't help the foreboding feeling he was getting right then…

"Raimundo, you're gonna be super-duper awesome and take Keiko's things downstairs, right~?" He grimaced, knowing exactly where this was heading. Kimiko's smirk only grew as she beamed up at him; they both knew who was winning this one.

Keiko looped around his other arm, joining Kimiko. "You'll do it for me, right? It's only a few things and I'd really appreciate it~"

"I don't trust your definition of 'a few'."

"It's only a _few_ things!" "Promise!"

"I'm not Shi- tt!" He swore, flinching away from Kimiko's pinching fingers.

"Something wrong?" she questioned innocently, shaking off fingers threateningly poised to pinch him again if they needed to. Eagerly, Keiko grinned and snickered in the background, still latched onto his arm. Raimundo grumbled, shaking both of them off as he stalked towards the main gate.

"Where's your shit anyway, Keiko?"

"_Riiiight_ over-" his eyes followed her fingers "- here."

"_Merda_! You plannin' on moving in!?"

Inside, Mari played with Andre and his toes and fingers, absentmindedly listening to a lecture reminding her of the house rules.

"No unexpected guests."

"Mmhmm." _Oh! Got your big toe!_

"Watch the volume of your music."

She giggled as Andre pouted and whined at her, trying to get his toe back. ("Mawi!" he cried, struggling.) "_Sim, sim_."

"When we call you for dinner, you girls better come up right away!"

"_Claro_." _Boop! Booped your little nose~_ She giggled some more when he tried to bite at her, chomping at her retreating fingers.

"Don't eat in your room, but if you do, make sure you clean it up before you girls go to bed."

"Okay." Andre stood and tried to make a grab for her hair in his frustration. She easily grabbed him before he had a chance and held him at arm's length, noting how much harder to carry he's been getting.

"Do _not_ go to bed late."

"We won't, _mãe_." _Growth spurts? He can't be getting older already!_

"Remember that they're your guests. Be a good hostess. If they need anything, make sure to get it for them!"

"Uh huh."

"I think _Pai_ and me have some pictures laying around here... Your friends would love your tutu stage!"

She snapped around, mouth agape. _What?_ "_Mãe!_"

"I was just making sure you were listening," she smiled pleasantly.

Mari pouted at her, only barely catching a glimpse of Shinki with keys in his hands being shadowed by a chatty Omi. _Hmm? Where are they going?_ She opted to ignore it. "_Mãeeeee,_" the teen dragged out, leaning back over the top of the table, clasping her hands over her chest and pouting. "Can I go alreadyyy? Kimi and Keiko are waiting for me."

Yaritza shook her head and lifted Andre away. "Go." Mari jumped up and was embracing her mother in seconds before running off towards her room, where she swore she'd seen the girls and Raimundo heading for. Her lip was bitten in anticipation and excitement, unable to wait for things to get going.

When she made it down the stairs, she found Keiko and Raimundo involved in an intense battle with a set of brooms they somehow got their hands on. "Don't mess with me, Raimundo!" Keiko declared. "It's my duty to fight for the honor and integrity of my best friends!"

"Integrity and honor my ass!" he laughed. "Jeeze, Kim; am I allowed to call you the princess of the house yet? Thing one and thing two will just not leave me alone with you!"

"Who you callin' a thing?" Mari protested, closing the door behind her as she announced herself. "Them be fightin' words!"

Only mildly amused, Kimiko was just looking on with crossed legs on the bed, her head in her hands. She sighed out, groaning, "I didn't ask for knights in my honor – I asked for girlfriends. I don't know what the universe was thinking when it pushed these two on me."

"_¡Mira!_" "HEY!"

"See?"

He shook his head, walking past Mari towards the door. "You nuts figure life out. I'm off." A chorus of good-byes and well wishes came with his departure as the girls went onto figuring dynamics out for Keiko's stay.

"I'm sleeping in Kim's bed," Keiko declared. Kim slapped her hand over Mari's mouth, just knowing that the inevitable argument was coming up and not really wanting to hear it. "That cool?"

"Totally," she smiled. Mari scowled and slunk into her bed, arms crossed over her chest. Allowing a beat to pass, Kimiko turned to her friend. "We have things to talk about though."

Mari's eyebrows furrowed in thought, not knowing what she was talking about right then. "Things to…? _¿De qué tu ha-?"_ She gasped dramatically, clutching her heart from the betrayal "Now?"

"Yes, now!"

"Why?" she whined. "Noooo! Kim, I said I wasn't sure if I wanted to, how could you?!"

A sudden whistle cut into their conversation. "Hey, hey, hey," Keiko called over them. "What the hell is all this about?"

Mari glared at a coyly shrugging Kimiko before turning to stare at the other lady in the room, unsure of how to even start conceptualizing how to explain the existence of a friend neither them have ever known about for all these years. Taking pity on her, Kimiko took it on. "She has a friend she's been hiding from us." Kinda.

"Mari!" Keiko gasped, playfully scandalized as she turned to Mari with her hands on her heart. "When were you planning on telling us this?"

"For as long as I could not have to?" she offered.

"And why's that, hmm?" Keiko pressed suspiciously, leaning forward.

"Y'know," the Hispanic dragged. "This is getting awkward and weird and me no likey the thingy you weirdos are doing right now, so I'm just gonna let ya'll make him uncomfortable instead of me, k?" She produced her laptop from under her bed and booted it up.

"Him?" Keiko exclaimed. "This just gets better and better!"

"Oh stuff it!" Mari snapped, jutting out her jaw poutily. She grumbled to herself, logging onto Skype and exchanging some quick messages with the unfortunately online Quinn to let him know what was happening. Kimiko and Keiko exchanged looks.

"Have you talked to him?"

"No – I found out by accident."

"How?"

"I walked down just as she was done talking to him herself."

"_¡__Oye!_" Mari called to them, indicating her waiting screen. "We doin' this or nah?"

"We're coming, we're coming, Miss Bossy," Kimiko assured her, taking a seat with Keiko on either side of her. Her stomach clenched in the sort of nervous flutter one gets when meeting someone entirely new as the sound of the call being patched through rang out. It seemed like all three of them waited for him to answer the call with baited breath, exchanging anxious looks. After what seemed like an eternity-

A click.

A ding.

_Shitshitshit... We shouldn't have done this... Shitshitshit... Shuffling, moving, adjustments, and-_

"Good Evening, ladies."

_Well, fuck._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Have I told you lately that I love you guys? Because I do.


End file.
